Air conditioner control method and apparatus, and multi-split air conditioner and storage medium

Abstract

The present application relates to a method for controlling an air conditioner, an apparatus, a variable refrigerant flow (VRF) air conditioner and a storage medium. The present application, when a VRF air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, obtains a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module, determines a control mode of the VRF air conditioner according to the water tank temperature, and then adjusts an opening degree of a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of a second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module according to the control mode of the air conditioner.

Description

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202310988402.6, filed on August 7, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the technical field of air conditioners, and in particular to a method for controlling an air conditioner, an apparatus for controlling an air conditioner, a multi-split air conditioner and a storage medium.BACKGROUND

[0003] A multi-split hot water system is generally used in combination with a plurality of air conditioner indoor units and one or more hydraulic modules. The indoor units are used for room temperature regulation, and the hydraulic modules are used for hot water production. When the indoor units and the hydraulic modules perform heating simultaneously, insufficient output of a heat pump unit may occur, thereby affecting a heating effect of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner.

[0004] The above content is provided solely to assist in understanding the technical solution of the present application and does not constitute an admission that the above content is prior art.SUMMARY

[0005] The main objective of the present application is to provide a method for controlling an air conditioner, an apparatus, a multi-split air conditioner and a storage medium, aiming to solve the technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner.

[0006] In order to achieve the above objective, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner applied to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. The MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises an outdoor unit; a plurality of indoor units; and a hydraulic module, the outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively, each indoor unit comprises an indoor heat exchanger and a first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger, and the hydraulic module comprises a hot water tank and a second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank.

[0007] The method comprises the following steps: obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank; determining an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and adjusting, according to the air conditioner control mode, an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element.

[0008] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element comprises: determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value.

[0009] In an embodiment, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: obtaining an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0010] In an embodiment, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: determining an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; querying a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0011] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value comprises: in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0012] In an embodiment, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0013] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil comprises: in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0014] In an embodiment, the indoor unit further comprises an electric auxiliary heating device corresponding to the hot water tank; the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank further comprises: in response to a difference between a temperature of a water tank coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank being less than a preset second temperature threshold, and the electric auxiliary heating device being turned on for electric heating, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a preset opening degree.

[0015] In an embodiment, the air conditioner control mode comprises a first opening degree control mode; where the adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the first opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determining a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0016] In an embodiment, the air conditioner control mode comprises a second opening degree control mode; where adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the second opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculating a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determining an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0017] In an embodiment, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0018] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides an apparatus for controlling an air conditioner, comprising: an acquisition module, configured to obtain a water tank temperature of the hot water tank in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands; a determination module, configured to determine an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and an adjustment module, configured to adjust an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element according to the air conditioner control mode.

[0019] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, comprising: a memory, a processor, and a program for controlling an air conditioner stored in the memory and executable by the processor, where the program for controlling an air conditioner is configured to implement the method for controlling the air conditioner described above.

[0020] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides a storage medium storing a program for controlling an air conditioner, which, when executed by a processor, implements the method for controlling the air conditioner described above.

[0021] The present application, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, obtains a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module, determines a control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner according to the water tank temperature, and then adjusts an opening degree of a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of a second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module according to the control mode of the air conditioner, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting heating effects of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the prior art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-split air conditioner in a hardware operating environment involved in an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for controlling the air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present application. FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present application. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present application. FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for controlling the air conditioner according to the first embodiment of the present application. Description of reference signs:

[0023] [Table 1_sm_0001]Reference signsNameReference signsName1outdoor unitLAhydraulic valve2indoor unitGAair pressure valve3hydraulic module121first reversing device11compressor122second reversing device12reversing device31hot water tank13outdoor heat exchangerEXVelectronic expansion valve

[0024] The realization of the purposes, functional features, and advantages of the present application will be further explained in conjunction with embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0025] It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely for explaining the present application and are not intended to limit the present application.

[0026] According to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-split air conditioner in a hardware operating environment involved in an embodiment of the present application.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises a processor 1001, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a communication bus 1002, a user interface 1003, a network interface 1004, and a memory 1005. The communication bus 1002 is configured to implement connection and communication among the components. In an embodiment, the user interface 1003 comprises a display and an input unit such as a keyboard, and the user interface 1003 further comprises standard wired interfaces and wireless interfaces. In an embodiment, the network interface 1004 comprises standard wired interfaces and wireless interfaces, such as a Wireless-Fidelity (Wi-Fi) interface. In an embodiment, the memory 1005 is a high-speed Random Access Memory (RAM), or is a stable Non-Volatile Memory (NVM), such as a disk storage. In an embodiment, the memory 1005 is a storage device independent of the processor 1001.

[0028] Those skilled in the art may understand that the structure shown in FIG. 1 does not constitute a limitation on the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner may comprise more or fewer components than those shown, or some components may be combined, or different component arrangements may be adopted.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the memory 1005 serving as a storage medium comprises an operating system, a network communication module, a user interface module, and a program for controlling an air conditioner.

[0030] In the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the network interface 1004 is mainly used for data communication with a network server, and the user interface 1003 is mainly used for data interaction with a user. In an embodiment, the processor 1001 and the memory 1005 of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner are provided in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner invokes, through the processor 1001, the program for controlling an air conditioner stored in the memory 1005 and executes the method for controlling an air conditioner provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0031] In an embodiment, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of a first embodiment of the method for controlling the air conditioner of the present application.

[0032] In this embodiment, the method for controlling the air conditioner comprises the following steps: Step S10, obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank.

[0033] In an embodiment, an execution subject may be the air conditioner device. The air conditioner device has functions of data processing, data communication, and program execution. The air conditioner device may be a controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. In an embodiment, the execution subject may alternatively be another device having similar functions, and the present embodiment does not impose limitations on this. For ease of description, the controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is taken as an example for description in this embodiment.

[0034] It's worth noting that, the air conditioner in this embodiment refers to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 3, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises one outdoor unit connected to a plurality of indoor units, and is capable of simultaneously adjusting parameters such as air temperature, humidity, cleanliness, and air flow rate in a plurality of rooms. The MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises, but is not limited to, operating modes such as cooling, heating, and fresh air circulation.

[0035] It should be noted that, in an embodiment of the present application, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises an outdoor unit, indoor units, and a hydraulic module. The outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively. The outdoor unit comprises a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and at least two reversing devices. Each indoor unit comprises at least one indoor heat exchanger. A hot water tank is arranged at an end of the hydraulic module. Each reversing device is connected to the compressor and is mainly used to control a refrigerant flow direction in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the reversing device is a four-way valve or a three-way valve, and no limitation is imposed in this embodiment.

[0036] In addition, throttling elements are provided between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit and between the outdoor unit and the hydraulic module. In the embodiment, the throttling elements comprise a first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger and a second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank. The throttling elements comprise electronic expansion valves and capillary tubes. In an embodiment, an electronic expansion valve is taken as an example for description. The throttling elements between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit and between the outdoor unit and the hydraulic module comprise a main-path electronic expansion valve and branch-path electronic expansion valves corresponding to each indoor unit or the hydraulic module, and no limitation is imposed in this embodiment.

[0037] It can be understood that, when an indoor unit of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner operates in a heating mode, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to an indoor heat exchanger through a four-way valve to perform condensation heat release. After heat exchange between the indoor heat exchanger and an indoor environment, a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is obtained, which then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0038] When a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a hot water production demand, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to a hot water tank through a four-way valve, where the hot water tank serves as a condenser. After heat exchange with a water circuit in the hot water tank, an outlet water temperature is greater than an inlet water temperature to realize heating. The refrigerant flowing through the water circuit of the hot water tank becomes a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant, and then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0039] It may be understood that, the water tank temperature comprises but is not limited to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank. A value of the water tank temperature may be an average value between a water temperature at an upper portion of the hot water tank and a water temperature at a lower portion of the hot water tank. The temperature at the center of the water tank coil refers to a refrigerant saturation temperature according to an exhaust pressure of the compressor. In an embodiment, the refrigerant saturation temperature is related to factors such as a refrigerant type and a refrigerant pressure, and is mainly used for temperature control, heat exchange, and improvement of energy efficiency. Considering that pressure loss exists when the refrigerant passes through various heat exchange components and that substantially no pressure loss exists when the refrigerant is transmitted in pipelines, in an embodiment, the temperature at the center of the coil of the hot water tank directly connected to a refrigerant output terminal of the compressor is used as the refrigerant saturation temperature according to the exhaust pressure.

[0040] Step S20, determining an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature.

[0041] In this embodiment, control manners of different throttling elements have different control logics. For example, with respect to a control manner for a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger, there are two control manners. One control manner is adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature. The other control manner is determining a temperature difference according to a mid-temperature of an indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average mid-temperature of each indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to the temperature difference.

[0042] With respect to a control manner for a second throttling element corresponding to a hot water tank, the control manner of the second throttling element is determined to be an automatic control or an abnormal control according to a temperature at a center of a water tank coil, a water temperature in the hot water tank, and a temperature at an outlet of the coil. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0043] Further, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0044] In a specific implementation, the water tank temperature mainly refers to the water temperature in the hot water tank. Specifically, when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw < TW1 °C, a first control mode is adopted; when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw > TW2 °C (42°C), a second control mode is adopted; and when 39 °C ≤ Tw ≤ 42 °C, a control mode of a previous operation is maintained. When the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is powered on for a first time, the second control mode is adopted. The first control mode refers to a control mode in which hot water production is prioritized and indoor units operating in heating are in a standby state. The second control mode refers to a control mode in which indoor units operating in heating and hot water production operate simultaneously.

[0045] TW1 °C may be 39 °C, and TW2 °C may be 42 °C. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0046] Step S30, adjusting, according to the air conditioner control mode, an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element.

[0047] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, adjustments of an opening degree of the first throttling element and an opening degree of the second throttling element are independent and do not affect each other.

[0048] In this embodiment, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module is obtained, an air conditioner control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is determined according to the water tank temperature, and then an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module is adjusted according to the air conditioner control mode, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting a heating effect of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present application.

[0050] Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S30 comprises: step S301, determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0051] It should be noted that, when performing opening degree control on the second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank, the second throttling element is first controlled to be initialized to an initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and then an automatic control mode of the second throttling element is entered. This is intended to stabilize measured temperatures and avoid frequent switching of control modes.

[0052] Further, after the second throttling element has completed maintaining the initial opening degree for a period of time, in order to avoid an excessive exhaust temperature of the compressor from having a significant impact on heating of the hot water tank, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: obtaining an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0053] It can be understood that an exhaust temperature of the compressor refers to a temperature at a refrigerant output end of the compressor. If the exhaust temperature is excessively high and an opening degree of the second throttling element is relatively small, a water tank temperature may rise rapidly, thereby affecting normal use by a user.

[0054] In a specific implementation, when it is detected for a preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is greater than a first temperature threshold, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased; when it is detected for the preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, the second throttling element is allowed to be decreased; and when it is detected for the preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is greater than a second temperature threshold, the second throttling element immediately increases by a preset opening degree, and thereafter increases by the preset opening degree at each interval of a certain duration, where the first temperature threshold is lower than the second temperature threshold.

[0055] For example, when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is greater than 95 °C, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased; when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to 95 °C, the second throttling element is allowed to be decreased; and when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is greater than 100 °C, the second throttling element immediately increases by 50B, and thereafter increases by 50B every 10 s. The above values are provided merely as examples and may be adaptively modified. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0056] In addition, in this embodiment and the following embodiments, when the hot water tank operates in a hot water production mode, an opening degree range of the corresponding second throttling element is 120 B to 480 B and the exhaust temperature threshold described above may be set to 95 °C.

[0057] Further, when the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, in order to accurately adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element so as to allocate a refrigerant flow ratio, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: determining an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; querying a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0058] It can be understood that the target supercooling degree has a negative correlation with the water temperature in the hot water tank. Generally, a higher water temperature in the hot water tank corresponds to a smaller target supercooling degree. When querying the target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank, reference may be made to Table 1. Table 1[Table 1_sm_0002]Water tank temperature TwTarget supercooling degree (°C)Tw<20The range is [8, 16], e.g., 12.20≤Tw<30The range is [6, 12], e.g., 7.30≤Tw<40The range is [4, 10], e.g., 5.40≤Tw<50The range is [2, 8], e.g., 4.50≤TwThe range is [0, 6], e.g., 4.

[0059] It should be noted that the actual supercooling degree refers to a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the opening change value of the second throttling element refers to a difference between the actual supercooling degree and the target supercooling degree.

[0060] Step S302, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change.

[0061] In this embodiment, different adjustment manners are adopted for adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a magnitude of the opening change value. The adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value comprises: in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0062] In a specific implementation, taking a preset threshold being 0, a preset first coefficient being 3, and a preset second coefficient being 1 as an example for illustration, adjustment of an opening degree of the second throttling element is specifically as follows: when the opening change value > 0, an opening degree of an electronic expansion valve = an original opening degree + the opening change value × 3; and when the opening change value ≤ 0, the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve = the original opening degree + the opening change value × 1.

[0063] Further, when adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger, there are two control modes. Steps of adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the first opening degree control mode specifically comprise: obtaining an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determining a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0064] It can be understood that, when determining a target opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature, reference may be made to Table 2. Table 2[Table 1_sm_0003]T4ablA1, range [20, 80], e.g., 54B-5, ra<55A2, range [20, 80], e.g., 50B-12 ran<-52A3, range [20, 80], e.g., 46BT4 < -12<A4, range [20, 80], e.g., 40B

[0065] For example, when a water temperature of the hot water tank is 30 °C, an opening degree of the first throttling element may be adjusted according to the first control mode. In this case, when an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located is 5 °C, the opening degree of the first throttling element is 54B.

[0066] Further, steps of adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the second opening degree control mode specifically comprise: obtaining a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculating a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determining an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0067] It should be noted that, when the water temperature of the hot water tank is greater than or equal to 42 °C, adjustment of the opening degree of the first throttling element may be performed according to the second control mode. In this case, the opening degree of the first throttling element is first initialized to a preset initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and after the initialization is completed, correction control is performed. A correction control logic is calculating a temperature difference between a temperature at the center of a coil of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average temperature at the center of a coil of all indoor heat exchangers having a heating demand, and then querying an opening change value of the first throttling element corresponding to the temperature difference, where a specific process of querying the opening change value of the first throttling element corresponding to the temperature difference may refer to Table 3. Table 3[Table 1_sm_0004]ConditionOpening changeT2i-T2avg < -3°Ca1, range [+8, +16], e.g., +10-3≤T2i-T2avg < -1°Ca2, range [+4, +10], e.g., +6-1≤T2i-T2avg≤1°Ca3, range [-4, +4], e.g., 01 < T2i - T2avg ≤ 3°Ca4, range [-8, 0], e.g., -4T2i-T2avg > 3°Ca5, range [-16, -4], e.g., -8

[0068] T2i refers to a temperature at the center of a coil of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and T2avg refers to an average value of temperatures at the center of coils of all target indoor heat exchangers having a heating demand.

[0069] In this embodiment, different opening degree control modes are determined according to the water tank temperature, such that opening degree adjustment is performed on the first throttling element corresponding to the indoor unit and / or the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module under different temperature scenarios, thereby balancing heating and hot water production capacity demands under different requirements and improving heating effects of the indoor units and hot water production effects of the hydraulic module.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present application.

[0071] Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S20 further comprises: step S310, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0072] It should be noted that determining whether a refrigerant circuit in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure may comprise detecting, within a continuous duration of 1 min, that a temperature at the center of the coil is greater than 53 °C, or, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, detecting for a continuous duration of 5 min that a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is less than 1 °C.

[0073] Step S320, in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0074] In a specific implementation, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, it indicates that at least one of heating or hot water production of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a poor heating effect at this time. In this case, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil comprises: in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0075] It can be understood that the preset second temperature threshold may be 53 °C, and a process of filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value may be removing a portion of the opening change value that is less than 0, that is, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased.

[0076] In addition, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, if a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is detected to be less than 1 °C for a continuous duration of 5 min, and an electric auxiliary heating device corresponding to the hot water tank is turned on for electric heating, an opening degree of the second throttling element may be directly adjusted to 55B.

[0077] In a specific implementation, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner enters an abnormal pressure state and is controlled by adopting a corresponding control strategy, if any one of the following conditions is satisfied: a difference between a temperature at the center of a water tank coil and the water tank temperature Tw is detected to be greater than 4 °C for a continuous duration of 10 s; or when the water tank temperature Tw is greater than or equal to a set temperature Tws of the hot water tank, the control may be exited.

[0078] In this embodiment, by determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, and in response to that the refrigerant circuit in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, adjusting an opening degree of the second throttling element according to a control strategy corresponding to the detected abnormal pressure, adverse impacts on heating or hot water production effects are avoided, thereby improving a user experience.

[0079] Furthermore, the present application further provides a storage medium storing a program for controlling an air conditioner, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the air conditioner control method described above.

[0080] Since this storage medium adopts all the technical solutions of all the above embodiments, it has at least all the beneficial effects brought about by the technical solutions of the above embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0081] Referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for controlling the air conditioner according to the first embodiment of the present application.

[0082] As shown in FIG. 6, the apparatus for controlling the air conditioner provided in the embodiment of the present application comprises: an acquisition module 10, configured to obtain a water tank temperature of the hot water tank in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands.

[0083] It should be noted that the air conditioner in this embodiment refers to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. Referring to FIG. 3, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is an air conditioner in which one outdoor unit is connected to a plurality of indoor units, and is capable of simultaneously adjusting parameters such as air temperature, humidity, cleanliness, and air flow rate of a plurality of rooms, comprising but not limited to modes such as cooling, heating, and fresh air circulation.

[0084] It should be further noted that the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner in this embodiment comprises an outdoor unit, indoor units, and a hydraulic module. The outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively. The outdoor unit comprises a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and at least two reversing devices. Each indoor unit comprises at least one indoor heat exchanger. A hot water tank is provided at an end of the hydraulic module. Each reversing device is connected to the compressor and is mainly used for controlling a refrigerant flow direction in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. The reversing device may be a four-way valve or a three-way valve, and this embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0085] In addition, throttling elements are respectively provided between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit as well as the hydraulic module. In this embodiment, the throttling elements comprise a first throttling element correspondingly provided for the indoor heat exchanger and a second throttling element correspondingly provided for the hot water tank. The throttling elements comprise an electronic expansion valve, a capillary tube, and the like. In this embodiment, an electronic expansion valve is mainly taken as an example for illustration. The throttling elements between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit as well as the hydraulic module may comprise a main electronic expansion valve, and may further comprise branch electronic expansion valves respectively corresponding to each indoor unit or the hydraulic module. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0086] It can be understood that, when an indoor unit of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner operates in a heating mode, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to an indoor heat exchanger through a four-way valve to perform condensation heat release. After heat exchange between the indoor heat exchanger and an indoor environment, a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is obtained, which then passes through throttling elements such as the electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0087] When a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a hot water production demand, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to a hot water tank through a four-way valve. The hot water tank serves as a condenser, and after heat exchange with a water circuit in the hot water tank, an outlet water temperature is greater than an inlet water temperature to realize heating. The refrigerant flowing through the water circuit of the hot water tank becomes a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant, and then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0088] It should be understood that the water tank temperature comprises, but is not limited to, a temperature at a center of a coil, a temperature at an outlet of the coil, and a water temperature in the hot water tank. The water tank temperature may be an average value between a water temperature at an upper portion of the hot water tank and a water temperature at a lower portion of the hot water tank. The temperature at the center of the water tank coil refers to a refrigerant saturation temperature corresponding to an exhaust pressure of the compressor. In this embodiment, the refrigerant saturation temperature is related to factors such as a refrigerant type and a refrigerant pressure, and mainly functions in temperature control, heat exchange, and improvement of energy efficiency. Considering that pressure loss exists when the refrigerant passes through various heat exchange components, and that substantially no pressure loss occurs when the refrigerant is transmitted in pipelines, in this embodiment, the temperature at the center of the coil of the hot water tank directly connected to a refrigerant output end of the compressor is used as the refrigerant saturation temperature corresponding to the exhaust pressure.

[0089] A determination module 20 is configured to determine an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature.

[0090] In this embodiment, control manners of different throttling elements have different control logics. For example, with respect to a control manner for a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger, there are two control manners. One control manner is adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature. The other control manner is determining a temperature difference according to a temperature at the center of a coil of an indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average temperature at the center of a coil of each indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to the temperature difference.

[0091] With respect to a control manner for a second throttling element corresponding to a hot water tank, the control manner of the second throttling element is determined to be automatic control or abnormal control according to a temperature at the center of a coil of the hot water tank, a water temperature in the hot water tank, and a temperature at an outlet of the coil. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0092] Further, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0093] In a specific implementation, the water tank temperature mainly refers to the water temperature in the hot water tank. Specifically, when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw < TW1 °C, a first control mode is adopted; when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw > TW2 °C (42 °C), a second control mode is adopted; and when 39 °C ≤ Tw ≤ 42 °C, a control mode of a previous operation is maintained. When the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is powered on for a first time, the second control mode is adopted. The first control mode refers to a control mode in which hot water production is prioritized and indoor units operating in heating are in a standby state. The second control mode refers to a control mode in which indoor units operating in heating and hot water production operate simultaneously.

[0094] TW1 °C may be 39 °C, and TW2 °C may be 42 °C. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0095] An adjustment module 30 is configured to adjust an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element according to the air conditioner control mode.

[0096] It is worth noting that, in this embodiment, adjustments of an opening degree of the first throttling element and an opening degree of the second throttling element are independent and do not affect each other.

[0097] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and to adjust the opening of the second throttling element according to the opening change value.

[0098] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0099] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; query a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0100] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0101] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank; in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0102] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to, in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filter the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0103] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to in response to a difference between a temperature of a water tank coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank being less than a preset second temperature threshold, and the electric auxiliary heating device being turned on for electric heating, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a preset opening degree.

[0104] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determine a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0105] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculate a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determine an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0106] In an embodiment, the determining module 20 is further configured to: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operate the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operate an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operate the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0107] In this embodiment, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module is obtained, an air conditioner control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is determined according to the water tank temperature, and then an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module is adjusted according to the air conditioner control mode, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting a heating effect of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.

[0108] It should be noted that, although the steps shown in the flowcharts of the embodiments of the present application are illustrated sequentially according to the arrows, the steps are not necessarily executed in the order indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, the execution of the steps is not strictly limited to a particular order, and the steps may be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least some of the steps shown in the drawings may comprise a plurality of sub-steps or a plurality of stages. The sub-steps or stages are not necessarily executed at the same time, but may be executed at different times, and the execution order thereof is not necessarily sequential, but may be alternately or intermittently executed with at least part of other steps or sub-steps or stages of other steps.

[0109] It should be understood that the above description is only illustrative and does not constitute any limitation on the technical solutions of the present application. In specific applications, those skilled in the art may make configurations according to actual needs, and the present application is not limited thereto.

[0110] It should be noted that the workflow described above is merely illustrative and does not limit the scope of protection of the present application. In practical applications, those skilled in the art may select part or all of the workflow according to actual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the present embodiment, and no limitation is imposed herein.

[0111] In addition, technical details that are not described in detail in the present embodiment may refer to the method for controlling an air conditioner provided in any embodiment of the present application, and details are not repeated herein.

[0112] Furthermore, it should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprise", "comprising", or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or system that comprises a series of elements not only comprises those elements but also comprises other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or system. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one ..." does not exclude the presence of additional identical elements in a process, method, article, or system that comprises the element.

[0113] The numbering of the embodiments described above is provided merely for descriptive purposes and does not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0114] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods in the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software in combination with necessary general hardware platforms, and can also be implemented by hardware. However, in many cases, the former is a preferable implementation manner. Based on such an understanding, the technical solutions of the present application, in essence or the parts contributing to the existing technology, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, such as a Read Only Memory (ROM), a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disc, and comprises a plurality of instructions for enabling a terminal device, which can be a mobile phone, a computer, a server, or a network device, to perform the methods described in the embodiments of the present application.

[0115] The foregoing are merely optional embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structural transformation or equivalent process transformation made by using the content of the description and drawings of the present application, or any direct or indirect application thereof in other related technical fields, shall fall within the patent protection scope of the present application.

Examples

first embodiment

[0031]In an embodiment, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner of the present application.

[0032]In this embodiment, the method for controlling the air conditioner comprises the following steps: Step S10, obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank.

[0033]In an embodiment, an execution subject may be the air conditioner device. The air conditioner device has functions of data processing, data communication, and program execution. The air conditioner device may be a controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. In an embodiment, the execution subject may alternatively be another device having similar functions, and the present embodiment does not impose limitations on this. For ease of description, the controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air condition...

second embodiment

[0049]As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to the present application.

[0050]Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S30 comprises: step S301, determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0051]It should be noted that, when performing opening degree control on the second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank, the second throttling element is first controlled to be initialized to an initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and then an automatic control mode of the second throttling element is entered. This is intended to stabilize measured temperatures and avoid frequent switching of control modes.

[0052]Further, after the second throttling element has completed maintaining the initial opening deg...

third embodiment

[0070]As shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to the present application.

[0071]Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S20 further comprises: step S310, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0072]It should be noted that determining whether a refrigerant circuit in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure may comprise detecting, within a continuous duration of 1 min, that a temperature at the center of the coil is greater than 53 °C, or, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, detecting for a continuous duration of 5 min that a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is less than 1 °C.

[0073]Step S320, in re...

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202310988402.6, filed on August 7, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the technical field of air conditioners, and in particular to a method for controlling an air conditioner, an apparatus for controlling an air conditioner, a multi-split air conditioner and a storage medium.BACKGROUND

[0003] A multi-split hot water system is generally used in combination with a plurality of air conditioner indoor units and one or more hydraulic modules. The indoor units are used for room temperature regulation, and the hydraulic modules are used for hot water production. When the indoor units and the hydraulic modules perform heating simultaneously, insufficient output of a heat pump unit may occur, thereby affecting a heating effect of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner.

[0004] The above content is provided solely to assist in understanding the technical solution of the present application and does not constitute an admission that the above content is prior art.SUMMARY

[0005] The main objective of the present application is to provide a method for controlling an air conditioner, an apparatus, a multi-split air conditioner and a storage medium, aiming to solve the technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner.

[0006] In order to achieve the above objective, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner applied to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. The MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises an outdoor unit; a plurality of indoor units; and a hydraulic module, the outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively, each indoor unit comprises an indoor heat exchanger and a first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger, and the hydraulic module comprises a hot water tank and a second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank.

[0007] The method comprises the following steps: obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank; determining an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and adjusting, according to the air conditioner control mode, an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element.

[0008] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element comprises: determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value.

[0009] In an embodiment, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: obtaining an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0010] In an embodiment, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: determining an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; querying a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0011] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value comprises: in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0012] In an embodiment, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0013] In an embodiment, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil comprises: in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0014] In an embodiment, the indoor unit further comprises an electric auxiliary heating device corresponding to the hot water tank; the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank further comprises: in response to a difference between a temperature of a water tank coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank being less than a preset second temperature threshold, and the electric auxiliary heating device being turned on for electric heating, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a preset opening degree.

[0015] In an embodiment, the air conditioner control mode comprises a first opening degree control mode; where the adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the first opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determining a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0016] In an embodiment, the air conditioner control mode comprises a second opening degree control mode; where adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the second opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculating a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determining an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0017] In an embodiment, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0018] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides an apparatus for controlling an air conditioner, comprising: an acquisition module, configured to obtain a water tank temperature of the hot water tank in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands; a determination module, configured to determine an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and an adjustment module, configured to adjust an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element according to the air conditioner control mode.

[0019] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, comprising: a memory, a processor, and a program for controlling an air conditioner stored in the memory and executable by the processor, where the program for controlling an air conditioner is configured to implement the method for controlling the air conditioner described above.

[0020] In addition, to achieve the above objective, the present application further provides a storage medium storing a program for controlling an air conditioner, which, when executed by a processor, implements the method for controlling the air conditioner described above.

[0021] The present application, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, obtains a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module, determines a control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner according to the water tank temperature, and then adjusts an opening degree of a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of a second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module according to the control mode of the air conditioner, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting heating effects of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the prior art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-split air conditioner in a hardware operating environment involved in an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for controlling the air conditioner according to a first embodiment of the present application. FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present application. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present application. FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for controlling the air conditioner according to the first embodiment of the present application. Description of reference signs:

[0023] [Table 1_sm_0001]Reference signsNameReference signsName1outdoor unitLAhydraulic valve2indoor unitGAair pressure valve3hydraulic module121first reversing device11compressor122second reversing device12reversing device31hot water tank13outdoor heat exchangerEXVelectronic expansion valve

[0024] The realization of the purposes, functional features, and advantages of the present application will be further explained in conjunction with embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0025] It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely for explaining the present application and are not intended to limit the present application.

[0026] According to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a multi-split air conditioner in a hardware operating environment involved in an embodiment of the present application.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises a processor 1001, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a communication bus 1002, a user interface 1003, a network interface 1004, and a memory 1005. The communication bus 1002 is configured to implement connection and communication among the components. In an embodiment, the user interface 1003 comprises a display and an input unit such as a keyboard, and the user interface 1003 further comprises standard wired interfaces and wireless interfaces. In an embodiment, the network interface 1004 comprises standard wired interfaces and wireless interfaces, such as a Wireless-Fidelity (Wi-Fi) interface. In an embodiment, the memory 1005 is a high-speed Random Access Memory (RAM), or is a stable Non-Volatile Memory (NVM), such as a disk storage. In an embodiment, the memory 1005 is a storage device independent of the processor 1001.

[0028] Those skilled in the art may understand that the structure shown in FIG. 1 does not constitute a limitation on the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner may comprise more or fewer components than those shown, or some components may be combined, or different component arrangements may be adopted.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the memory 1005 serving as a storage medium comprises an operating system, a network communication module, a user interface module, and a program for controlling an air conditioner.

[0030] In the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner shown in FIG. 1, in an embodiment, the network interface 1004 is mainly used for data communication with a network server, and the user interface 1003 is mainly used for data interaction with a user. In an embodiment, the processor 1001 and the memory 1005 of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner are provided in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner invokes, through the processor 1001, the program for controlling an air conditioner stored in the memory 1005 and executes the method for controlling an air conditioner provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0031] In an embodiment, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of a first embodiment of the method for controlling the air conditioner of the present application.

[0032] In this embodiment, the method for controlling the air conditioner comprises the following steps: Step S10, obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank.

[0033] In an embodiment, an execution subject may be the air conditioner device. The air conditioner device has functions of data processing, data communication, and program execution. The air conditioner device may be a controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. In an embodiment, the execution subject may alternatively be another device having similar functions, and the present embodiment does not impose limitations on this. For ease of description, the controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is taken as an example for description in this embodiment.

[0034] It's worth noting that, the air conditioner in this embodiment refers to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 3, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises one outdoor unit connected to a plurality of indoor units, and is capable of simultaneously adjusting parameters such as air temperature, humidity, cleanliness, and air flow rate in a plurality of rooms. The MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises, but is not limited to, operating modes such as cooling, heating, and fresh air circulation.

[0035] It should be noted that, in an embodiment of the present application, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner comprises an outdoor unit, indoor units, and a hydraulic module. The outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively. The outdoor unit comprises a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and at least two reversing devices. Each indoor unit comprises at least one indoor heat exchanger. A hot water tank is arranged at an end of the hydraulic module. Each reversing device is connected to the compressor and is mainly used to control a refrigerant flow direction in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner, and the reversing device is a four-way valve or a three-way valve, and no limitation is imposed in this embodiment.

[0036] In addition, throttling elements are provided between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit and between the outdoor unit and the hydraulic module. In the embodiment, the throttling elements comprise a first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger and a second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank. The throttling elements comprise electronic expansion valves and capillary tubes. In an embodiment, an electronic expansion valve is taken as an example for description. The throttling elements between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit and between the outdoor unit and the hydraulic module comprise a main-path electronic expansion valve and branch-path electronic expansion valves corresponding to each indoor unit or the hydraulic module, and no limitation is imposed in this embodiment.

[0037] It can be understood that, when an indoor unit of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner operates in a heating mode, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to an indoor heat exchanger through a four-way valve to perform condensation heat release. After heat exchange between the indoor heat exchanger and an indoor environment, a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is obtained, which then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0038] When a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a hot water production demand, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to a hot water tank through a four-way valve, where the hot water tank serves as a condenser. After heat exchange with a water circuit in the hot water tank, an outlet water temperature is greater than an inlet water temperature to realize heating. The refrigerant flowing through the water circuit of the hot water tank becomes a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant, and then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0039] It may be understood that, the water tank temperature comprises but is not limited to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank. A value of the water tank temperature may be an average value between a water temperature at an upper portion of the hot water tank and a water temperature at a lower portion of the hot water tank. The temperature at the center of the water tank coil refers to a refrigerant saturation temperature according to an exhaust pressure of the compressor. In an embodiment, the refrigerant saturation temperature is related to factors such as a refrigerant type and a refrigerant pressure, and is mainly used for temperature control, heat exchange, and improvement of energy efficiency. Considering that pressure loss exists when the refrigerant passes through various heat exchange components and that substantially no pressure loss exists when the refrigerant is transmitted in pipelines, in an embodiment, the temperature at the center of the coil of the hot water tank directly connected to a refrigerant output terminal of the compressor is used as the refrigerant saturation temperature according to the exhaust pressure.

[0040] Step S20, determining an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature.

[0041] In this embodiment, control manners of different throttling elements have different control logics. For example, with respect to a control manner for a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger, there are two control manners. One control manner is adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature. The other control manner is determining a temperature difference according to a mid-temperature of an indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average mid-temperature of each indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to the temperature difference.

[0042] With respect to a control manner for a second throttling element corresponding to a hot water tank, the control manner of the second throttling element is determined to be an automatic control or an abnormal control according to a temperature at a center of a water tank coil, a water temperature in the hot water tank, and a temperature at an outlet of the coil. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0043] Further, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0044] In a specific implementation, the water tank temperature mainly refers to the water temperature in the hot water tank. Specifically, when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw < TW1 °C, a first control mode is adopted; when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw > TW2 °C (42°C), a second control mode is adopted; and when 39 °C ≤ Tw ≤ 42 °C, a control mode of a previous operation is maintained. When the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is powered on for a first time, the second control mode is adopted. The first control mode refers to a control mode in which hot water production is prioritized and indoor units operating in heating are in a standby state. The second control mode refers to a control mode in which indoor units operating in heating and hot water production operate simultaneously.

[0045] TW1 °C may be 39 °C, and TW2 °C may be 42 °C. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0046] Step S30, adjusting, according to the air conditioner control mode, an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element.

[0047] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, adjustments of an opening degree of the first throttling element and an opening degree of the second throttling element are independent and do not affect each other.

[0048] In this embodiment, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module is obtained, an air conditioner control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is determined according to the water tank temperature, and then an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module is adjusted according to the air conditioner control mode, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting a heating effect of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a second embodiment of the present application.

[0050] Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S30 comprises: step S301, determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0051] It should be noted that, when performing opening degree control on the second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank, the second throttling element is first controlled to be initialized to an initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and then an automatic control mode of the second throttling element is entered. This is intended to stabilize measured temperatures and avoid frequent switching of control modes.

[0052] Further, after the second throttling element has completed maintaining the initial opening degree for a period of time, in order to avoid an excessive exhaust temperature of the compressor from having a significant impact on heating of the hot water tank, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: obtaining an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0053] It can be understood that an exhaust temperature of the compressor refers to a temperature at a refrigerant output end of the compressor. If the exhaust temperature is excessively high and an opening degree of the second throttling element is relatively small, a water tank temperature may rise rapidly, thereby affecting normal use by a user.

[0054] In a specific implementation, when it is detected for a preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is greater than a first temperature threshold, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased; when it is detected for the preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to the first temperature threshold, the second throttling element is allowed to be decreased; and when it is detected for the preset first duration that the exhaust temperature is greater than a second temperature threshold, the second throttling element immediately increases by a preset opening degree, and thereafter increases by the preset opening degree at each interval of a certain duration, where the first temperature threshold is lower than the second temperature threshold.

[0055] For example, when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is greater than 95 °C, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased; when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to 95 °C, the second throttling element is allowed to be decreased; and when it is detected for 10 s that the exhaust temperature is greater than 100 °C, the second throttling element immediately increases by 50B, and thereafter increases by 50B every 10 s. The above values are provided merely as examples and may be adaptively modified. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0056] In addition, in this embodiment and the following embodiments, when the hot water tank operates in a hot water production mode, an opening degree range of the corresponding second throttling element is 120 B to 480 B and the exhaust temperature threshold described above may be set to 95 °C.

[0057] Further, when the exhaust temperature is less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, in order to accurately adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element so as to allocate a refrigerant flow ratio, the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: determining an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; querying a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0058] It can be understood that the target supercooling degree has a negative correlation with the water temperature in the hot water tank. Generally, a higher water temperature in the hot water tank corresponds to a smaller target supercooling degree. When querying the target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank, reference may be made to Table 1. Table 1[Table 1_sm_0002]Water tank temperature TwTarget supercooling degree (°C)Tw<20The range is [8, 16], e.g., 12.20≤Tw<30The range is [6, 12], e.g., 7.30≤Tw<40The range is [4, 10], e.g., 5.40≤Tw<50The range is [2, 8], e.g., 4.50≤TwThe range is [0, 6], e.g., 4.

[0059] It should be noted that the actual supercooling degree refers to a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the opening change value of the second throttling element refers to a difference between the actual supercooling degree and the target supercooling degree.

[0060] Step S302, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change.

[0061] In this embodiment, different adjustment manners are adopted for adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a magnitude of the opening change value. The adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value comprises: in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0062] In a specific implementation, taking a preset threshold being 0, a preset first coefficient being 3, and a preset second coefficient being 1 as an example for illustration, adjustment of an opening degree of the second throttling element is specifically as follows: when the opening change value > 0, an opening degree of an electronic expansion valve = an original opening degree + the opening change value × 3; and when the opening change value ≤ 0, the opening degree of the electronic expansion valve = the original opening degree + the opening change value × 1.

[0063] Further, when adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger, there are two control modes. Steps of adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the first opening degree control mode specifically comprise: obtaining an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determining a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0064] It can be understood that, when determining a target opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature, reference may be made to Table 2. Table 2[Table 1_sm_0003]T4ablA1, range [20, 80], e.g., 54B-5, ra<55A2, range [20, 80], e.g., 50B-12 ran<-52A3, range [20, 80], e.g., 46BT4 < -12<A4, range [20, 80], e.g., 40B

[0065] For example, when a water temperature of the hot water tank is 30 °C, an opening degree of the first throttling element may be adjusted according to the first control mode. In this case, when an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located is 5 °C, the opening degree of the first throttling element is 54B.

[0066] Further, steps of adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the second opening degree control mode specifically comprise: obtaining a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculating a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determining an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0067] It should be noted that, when the water temperature of the hot water tank is greater than or equal to 42 °C, adjustment of the opening degree of the first throttling element may be performed according to the second control mode. In this case, the opening degree of the first throttling element is first initialized to a preset initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and after the initialization is completed, correction control is performed. A correction control logic is calculating a temperature difference between a temperature at the center of a coil of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average temperature at the center of a coil of all indoor heat exchangers having a heating demand, and then querying an opening change value of the first throttling element corresponding to the temperature difference, where a specific process of querying the opening change value of the first throttling element corresponding to the temperature difference may refer to Table 3. Table 3[Table 1_sm_0004]ConditionOpening changeT2i-T2avg < -3°Ca1, range [+8, +16], e.g., +10-3≤T2i-T2avg < -1°Ca2, range [+4, +10], e.g., +6-1≤T2i-T2avg≤1°Ca3, range [-4, +4], e.g., 01 < T2i - T2avg ≤ 3°Ca4, range [-8, 0], e.g., -4T2i-T2avg > 3°Ca5, range [-16, -4], e.g., -8

[0068] T2i refers to a temperature at the center of a coil of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and T2avg refers to an average value of temperatures at the center of coils of all target indoor heat exchangers having a heating demand.

[0069] In this embodiment, different opening degree control modes are determined according to the water tank temperature, such that opening degree adjustment is performed on the first throttling element corresponding to the indoor unit and / or the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module under different temperature scenarios, thereby balancing heating and hot water production capacity demands under different requirements and improving heating effects of the indoor units and hot water production effects of the hydraulic module.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to a third embodiment of the present application.

[0071] Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S20 further comprises: step S310, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0072] It should be noted that determining whether a refrigerant circuit in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure may comprise detecting, within a continuous duration of 1 min, that a temperature at the center of the coil is greater than 53 °C, or, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, detecting for a continuous duration of 5 min that a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is less than 1 °C.

[0073] Step S320, in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0074] In a specific implementation, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, it indicates that at least one of heating or hot water production of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a poor heating effect at this time. In this case, the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil comprises: in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0075] It can be understood that the preset second temperature threshold may be 53 °C, and a process of filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value may be removing a portion of the opening change value that is less than 0, that is, the second throttling element is not allowed to be decreased.

[0076] In addition, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, if a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is detected to be less than 1 °C for a continuous duration of 5 min, and an electric auxiliary heating device corresponding to the hot water tank is turned on for electric heating, an opening degree of the second throttling element may be directly adjusted to 55B.

[0077] In a specific implementation, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner enters an abnormal pressure state and is controlled by adopting a corresponding control strategy, if any one of the following conditions is satisfied: a difference between a temperature at the center of a water tank coil and the water tank temperature Tw is detected to be greater than 4 °C for a continuous duration of 10 s; or when the water tank temperature Tw is greater than or equal to a set temperature Tws of the hot water tank, the control may be exited.

[0078] In this embodiment, by determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, and in response to that the refrigerant circuit in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure, adjusting an opening degree of the second throttling element according to a control strategy corresponding to the detected abnormal pressure, adverse impacts on heating or hot water production effects are avoided, thereby improving a user experience.

[0079] Furthermore, the present application further provides a storage medium storing a program for controlling an air conditioner, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the air conditioner control method described above.

[0080] Since this storage medium adopts all the technical solutions of all the above embodiments, it has at least all the beneficial effects brought about by the technical solutions of the above embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0081] Referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for controlling the air conditioner according to the first embodiment of the present application.

[0082] As shown in FIG. 6, the apparatus for controlling the air conditioner provided in the embodiment of the present application comprises: an acquisition module 10, configured to obtain a water tank temperature of the hot water tank in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands.

[0083] It should be noted that the air conditioner in this embodiment refers to a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. Referring to FIG. 3, the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is an air conditioner in which one outdoor unit is connected to a plurality of indoor units, and is capable of simultaneously adjusting parameters such as air temperature, humidity, cleanliness, and air flow rate of a plurality of rooms, comprising but not limited to modes such as cooling, heating, and fresh air circulation.

[0084] It should be further noted that the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner in this embodiment comprises an outdoor unit, indoor units, and a hydraulic module. The outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively. The outdoor unit comprises a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, and at least two reversing devices. Each indoor unit comprises at least one indoor heat exchanger. A hot water tank is provided at an end of the hydraulic module. Each reversing device is connected to the compressor and is mainly used for controlling a refrigerant flow direction in the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. The reversing device may be a four-way valve or a three-way valve, and this embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0085] In addition, throttling elements are respectively provided between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit as well as the hydraulic module. In this embodiment, the throttling elements comprise a first throttling element correspondingly provided for the indoor heat exchanger and a second throttling element correspondingly provided for the hot water tank. The throttling elements comprise an electronic expansion valve, a capillary tube, and the like. In this embodiment, an electronic expansion valve is mainly taken as an example for illustration. The throttling elements between the outdoor unit and each indoor unit as well as the hydraulic module may comprise a main electronic expansion valve, and may further comprise branch electronic expansion valves respectively corresponding to each indoor unit or the hydraulic module. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0086] It can be understood that, when an indoor unit of a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner operates in a heating mode, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to an indoor heat exchanger through a four-way valve to perform condensation heat release. After heat exchange between the indoor heat exchanger and an indoor environment, a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is obtained, which then passes through throttling elements such as the electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0087] When a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has a hot water production demand, a refrigerant is compressed by a compressor to obtain a high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant. The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant is delivered to a hot water tank through a four-way valve. The hot water tank serves as a condenser, and after heat exchange with a water circuit in the hot water tank, an outlet water temperature is greater than an inlet water temperature to realize heating. The refrigerant flowing through the water circuit of the hot water tank becomes a medium-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant, and then passes through throttling elements such as an electronic expansion valve and a main capillary tube described above to obtain a low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant. The low-pressure and medium-temperature refrigerant is delivered to an outdoor heat exchanger for evaporation to obtain a low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant, and finally flows back to the compressor through the four-way valve, thereby completing a single heating process.

[0088] It should be understood that the water tank temperature comprises, but is not limited to, a temperature at a center of a coil, a temperature at an outlet of the coil, and a water temperature in the hot water tank. The water tank temperature may be an average value between a water temperature at an upper portion of the hot water tank and a water temperature at a lower portion of the hot water tank. The temperature at the center of the water tank coil refers to a refrigerant saturation temperature corresponding to an exhaust pressure of the compressor. In this embodiment, the refrigerant saturation temperature is related to factors such as a refrigerant type and a refrigerant pressure, and mainly functions in temperature control, heat exchange, and improvement of energy efficiency. Considering that pressure loss exists when the refrigerant passes through various heat exchange components, and that substantially no pressure loss occurs when the refrigerant is transmitted in pipelines, in this embodiment, the temperature at the center of the coil of the hot water tank directly connected to a refrigerant output end of the compressor is used as the refrigerant saturation temperature corresponding to the exhaust pressure.

[0089] A determination module 20 is configured to determine an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature.

[0090] In this embodiment, control manners of different throttling elements have different control logics. For example, with respect to a control manner for a first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger, there are two control manners. One control manner is adjusting an opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to an outdoor ambient temperature. The other control manner is determining a temperature difference according to a temperature at the center of a coil of an indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand and an average temperature at the center of a coil of each indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to an opening degree corresponding to the temperature difference.

[0091] With respect to a control manner for a second throttling element corresponding to a hot water tank, the control manner of the second throttling element is determined to be automatic control or abnormal control according to a temperature at the center of a coil of the hot water tank, a water temperature in the hot water tank, and a temperature at an outlet of the coil. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0092] Further, the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0093] In a specific implementation, the water tank temperature mainly refers to the water temperature in the hot water tank. Specifically, when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw < TW1 °C, a first control mode is adopted; when the water temperature in the hot water tank Tw > TW2 °C (42 °C), a second control mode is adopted; and when 39 °C ≤ Tw ≤ 42 °C, a control mode of a previous operation is maintained. When the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is powered on for a first time, the second control mode is adopted. The first control mode refers to a control mode in which hot water production is prioritized and indoor units operating in heating are in a standby state. The second control mode refers to a control mode in which indoor units operating in heating and hot water production operate simultaneously.

[0094] TW1 °C may be 39 °C, and TW2 °C may be 42 °C. This embodiment does not impose any specific limitation thereon.

[0095] An adjustment module 30 is configured to adjust an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element according to the air conditioner control mode.

[0096] It is worth noting that, in this embodiment, adjustments of an opening degree of the first throttling element and an opening degree of the second throttling element are independent and do not affect each other.

[0097] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and to adjust the opening of the second throttling element according to the opening change value.

[0098] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0099] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; query a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determine the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

[0100] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, where the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

[0101] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to determine whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank; in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

[0102] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to, in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filter the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, where the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

[0103] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to in response to a difference between a temperature of a water tank coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank being less than a preset second temperature threshold, and the electric auxiliary heating device being turned on for electric heating, adjust the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a preset opening degree.

[0104] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determine a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

[0105] In an embodiment, the adjustment module 30 is further configured to obtain a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculate a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determine an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

[0106] In an embodiment, the determining module 20 is further configured to: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operate the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operate an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, where a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operate the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, where a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

[0107] In this embodiment, when a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of a hot water tank in a hydraulic module is obtained, an air conditioner control mode of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is determined according to the water tank temperature, and then an opening degree of the first throttling element corresponding to an indoor heat exchanger or an opening degree of the second throttling element corresponding to the hydraulic module is adjusted according to the air conditioner control mode, thereby adjusting a refrigerant flow ratio and adjusting a heating effect of the indoor heat exchanger or the hydraulic module. As a result, a technical problem in the related art that a heating effect is poor when heating and hot water production are simultaneously performed in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is avoided, and a heating effect of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner is improved.

[0108] It should be noted that, although the steps shown in the flowcharts of the embodiments of the present application are illustrated sequentially according to the arrows, the steps are not necessarily executed in the order indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, the execution of the steps is not strictly limited to a particular order, and the steps may be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least some of the steps shown in the drawings may comprise a plurality of sub-steps or a plurality of stages. The sub-steps or stages are not necessarily executed at the same time, but may be executed at different times, and the execution order thereof is not necessarily sequential, but may be alternately or intermittently executed with at least part of other steps or sub-steps or stages of other steps.

[0109] It should be understood that the above description is only illustrative and does not constitute any limitation on the technical solutions of the present application. In specific applications, those skilled in the art may make configurations according to actual needs, and the present application is not limited thereto.

[0110] It should be noted that the workflow described above is merely illustrative and does not limit the scope of protection of the present application. In practical applications, those skilled in the art may select part or all of the workflow according to actual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the present embodiment, and no limitation is imposed herein.

[0111] In addition, technical details that are not described in detail in the present embodiment may refer to the method for controlling an air conditioner provided in any embodiment of the present application, and details are not repeated herein.

[0112] Furthermore, it should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprise", "comprising", or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or system that comprises a series of elements not only comprises those elements but also comprises other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or system. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one ..." does not exclude the presence of additional identical elements in a process, method, article, or system that comprises the element.

[0113] The numbering of the embodiments described above is provided merely for descriptive purposes and does not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0114] Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods in the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software in combination with necessary general hardware platforms, and can also be implemented by hardware. However, in many cases, the former is a preferable implementation manner. Based on such an understanding, the technical solutions of the present application, in essence or the parts contributing to the existing technology, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, such as a Read Only Memory (ROM), a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disc, and comprises a plurality of instructions for enabling a terminal device, which can be a mobile phone, a computer, a server, or a network device, to perform the methods described in the embodiments of the present application.

[0115] The foregoing are merely optional embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structural transformation or equivalent process transformation made by using the content of the description and drawings of the present application, or any direct or indirect application thereof in other related technical fields, shall fall within the patent protection scope of the present application.

Examples

first embodiment

[0031]In an embodiment, the present application provides a method for controlling an air conditioner. As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner of the present application.

[0032]In this embodiment, the method for controlling the air conditioner comprises the following steps: Step S10, obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both heating and hot water production demands, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank.

[0033]In an embodiment, an execution subject may be the air conditioner device. The air conditioner device has functions of data processing, data communication, and program execution. The air conditioner device may be a controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner. In an embodiment, the execution subject may alternatively be another device having similar functions, and the present embodiment does not impose limitations on this. For ease of description, the controller of the MULTI-SPLIT air condition...

second embodiment

[0049]As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to the present application.

[0050]Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S30 comprises: step S301, determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0051]It should be noted that, when performing opening degree control on the second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank, the second throttling element is first controlled to be initialized to an initial opening degree and maintained for a certain duration, and then an automatic control mode of the second throttling element is entered. This is intended to stabilize measured temperatures and avoid frequent switching of control modes.

[0052]Further, after the second throttling element has completed maintaining the initial opening deg...

third embodiment

[0070]As shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the method for controlling the air conditioner according to the present application.

[0071]Based on the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the step S20 further comprises: step S310, determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

[0072]It should be noted that determining whether a refrigerant circuit in a MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has an abnormal pressure may comprise detecting, within a continuous duration of 1 min, that a temperature at the center of the coil is greater than 53 °C, or, when the MULTI-SPLIT air conditioner has both heating and hot water production demands, after operating for 20 mins, detecting for a continuous duration of 5 min that a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water tank temperature Tw is less than 1 °C.

[0073]Step S320, in re...

Claims

1. A method for controlling an air conditioner for a multi-split air conditioner, wherein the multi-split air conditioner comprises an outdoor unit, a plurality of indoor units, and a hydraulic module, the outdoor unit is connected to each indoor unit and the hydraulic module respectively, each indoor unit comprises an indoor heat exchanger and a first throttling element corresponding to the indoor heat exchanger, and the hydraulic module comprises a hot water tank and a second throttling element corresponding to the hot water tank, the method for controlling the air conditioner comprising: obtaining, in response to the air conditioner having both a heating demand and a hot water production demand, a water tank temperature of the hot water tank; determining an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and adjusting, according to the air conditioner control mode, an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element.

2. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the water tank temperature comprises a temperature at a center of a coil, a temperature at an outlet of the coil, and a water temperature in the hot water tank; wherein the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element comprises: determining an opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value.

3. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the outdoor unit further comprises a compressor; wherein the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: obtaining an exhaust temperature of the compressor; in response to the exhaust temperature being greater than an exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the exhaust temperature, the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to the exhaust temperature being less than or equal to the exhaust temperature threshold, determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank.

4. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 3, wherein the determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil, the temperature at the outlet of the coil, and the water temperature in the hot water tank comprises: determining an actual supercooling degree according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the temperature at the outlet of the coil; querying a target supercooling degree corresponding to the water temperature in the hot water tank; and determining the opening change value of the second throttling element according to the target supercooling degree and the actual supercooling degree.

5. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value comprises: in response to the opening change value being greater than a preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset first coefficient; and in response to the opening change value being less than or equal to the preset threshold, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the opening change value and a preset second coefficient, wherein the preset first coefficient is greater than the preset second coefficient.

6. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 2, further comprising: determining whether a refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has an abnormal pressure according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank; and in response to determining that the refrigerant circuit in the air conditioner has the abnormal pressure, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and / or the water temperature in the hot water tank until a duration in which a difference between the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a preset first temperature threshold exceeds a preset first duration, or the water temperature in the hot water tank is greater than a set temperature of the hot water tank.

7. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 6, wherein the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil comprises: in response to the temperature at the center of the coil being greater than or equal to a preset second temperature threshold, filtering the opening change value to obtain a target opening change value, wherein the target opening change value is an opening change value greater than or equal to a preset threshold; and adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the target opening change value.

8. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 6, wherein the indoor unit further comprises an electric auxiliary heating device corresponding to the hot water tank; wherein the adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to the temperature at the center of the coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank further comprises: in response to a difference between a temperature of a water tank coil and the water temperature in the hot water tank being less than a preset second temperature threshold, and the electric auxiliary heating device being turned on for electric heating, adjusting the opening degree of the second throttling element according to a preset opening degree.

9. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioner control mode comprises a first opening degree control mode; wherein the adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the first opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining an outdoor ambient temperature of an area where the outdoor unit of the air conditioner is located; determining a target opening degree corresponding to the outdoor ambient temperature; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the target opening degree.

10. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the air conditioner control mode comprises a second opening degree control mode; wherein adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the second opening degree control mode comprises: obtaining a mid-temperature of a target indoor heat exchanger having a heating demand, and an average mid-temperature of each target indoor heat exchanger; calculating a temperature difference between the mid-temperature and the average mid-temperature; determining an opening change value to be adjusted corresponding to the temperature difference; and adjusting the opening degree of the first throttling element according to the opening change value to be adjusted.

11. The method for controlling the air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the determining the air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature comprises: in response to the water tank temperature being within a first temperature interval, operating the first opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element; in response to the water tank temperature being within a second temperature interval, operating an opening degree control mode of a previous operation, wherein a minimum value of the second temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the first temperature interval; and in response to the water tank temperature being within a third temperature interval, operating the second opening degree control mode to adjust the opening degree of the first throttling element, wherein a minimum value of the third temperature interval is greater than a maximum value of the second temperature interval.

12. An apparatus for controlling an air conditioner, the apparatus comprising: an acquisition module, configured to obtain a water tank temperature of the hot water tank in response to the air conditioner having both a heating demand and a hot water production demand; a determination module, configured to determine an air conditioner control mode corresponding to the water tank temperature; and an adjustment module, configured to adjust an opening degree of the first throttling element and / or the second throttling element according to the air conditioner control mode.

13. A multi-split air conditioner, characterized by comprising: a memory, a processor, and a program for controlling an air conditioner stored in the memory and executable by the processor, wherein the program for controlling an air conditioner is configured to implement a method for controlling the air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

14. A storage medium, characterized in that, a program for controlling an air conditioner is stored in the storage medium, and the program for controlling the air conditioner, when executed by a processor, implements a method for controlling the air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

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