Heat pump for building heating and heating thus equipped

Abstract

TITLE: Heat pump for building heating and heating equipped with it Heat pump (10) for building heating (100) comprising a heat pump housing (12) housing a fan (16) for at least indirectly cooling heat-generating components (28, 29) of an inverter (25), housed in a housing (22). The inverter (25) is at least indirectly connected to a housing wall (26) at least partially made of metal, which is swept by the air stream generated by the fan (16). A part of the heat-generating components (28, 29) are at least indirectly connected by a heat-conducting element (32) to the metal area of ​​the housing wall (26). Figure 1

Description

Title of the invention: Heat pump for heating a building and heating system thus equipped FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to a heat pump for heating a building which is distinguished in particular by a more compact construction with low noise emission. The invention also relates to a building heater equipped with a heat pump as defined. STATE OF THE ART

[0002] Heat pumps are part of current building heating systems. They are known according to the state of the art. They usually comprise a heat pump installed in the outer area of ​​the housing and a heat pump housing installed outside the building, the heat pump housing housing a fan used to evaporate the refrigerant with the surrounding air. The vaporized refrigerant then arrives in the compressor which liquefies it by increasing the pressure and feeds a heat exchanger which heats the interior of the building.

[0003] It is already known to use an inverter to control the regulation of the rotation speed of the compressor. According to this method, the alternating current of the network is first converted into a direct current and then back into an alternating current. The inverter is installed in an inverter housing itself installed in the housing of the heat pump; it has cooling fins which are swept by the air stream generated by the fan so as to cool by thermal conduction with the cooling fins, the heat-releasing components of the inverter. Such cooling fins in the air stream of the fan constitute a significant source of noise which is decisive for the choice of the location of the heat pump or the heat pump module.

[0004] DISCLOSURE AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The heat pump for building heating according to the present invention has the advantage of particularly low and reduced noise emission compared to the state of the art while having a relatively compact construction.

[0006] The invention is based on the idea of ​​diverting at least part of the heat released by the heat-generating components, due to losses, by a housing wall in thermal conduction with the air stream of the fan and of evacuating this air stream (air cooling). Thus, there is the advantage of reducing the size or the number of cooling fins compared to the state of the art; in the best of In this case, it even allows the complete elimination of cooling fins, among other structures, if the thermal energy is supplied completely by the wall of the inverter housing.

[0007] According to the above explanations, the heat pump according to the invention for heating a building with the characteristics as defined above, comprises a heat pump housing equipped with a fan for at least indirectly cooling the heat-releasing components of an inverter. The inverter housed in a housing is connected at least indirectly to a housing wall which is at least partly made of metal. The housing wall is swept by the air stream of the fan; it is important according to the invention that at least a part of the heat-releasing components are connected at least indirectly by at least one heat-conducting element to the metal area of ​​the housing wall.

[0008] The particularly simple thermal connection of the heat-generating components with the wall of the inverter housing results from the fact that at least one heat-generating element is designed as a heat-conducting label.

[0009] Such a thermally conductive label also has the advantage of very simply compensating for any tolerances (gaps) necessary for mounting between the heat-generating component(s) and the wall of the housing with the thermally conductive label.

[0010] Additionally or alternatively, at least one heat-conducting element is formed as a metal heat-transmitting element at least indirectly in contact with at least one heat-generating component. Such a heat-transmitting element, formed, for example, as a cast aluminum part, has the advantage of being able to span larger distances (gaps) between the housing wall and the component and of being of a more flexible design (circuit board with heat-generating components). Furthermore, such a heat-conducting element, which is itself connected to the housing wall by a heat-conducting label, enables conduction over a large area for the heat of the housing wall for a suitable geometry (gaps).

[0011] To optimize the geometry of the heat pump housing and improve the cooling effect of the inverter housing wall, it is advantageous for the housing wall to be installed at an acute angle to the air stream generated by the fan. Thus, the air stream arrives, for example, at an angle of between 20° and 60° on the housing wall, which allows a particularly intense heat exchange between the housing wall and the air stream.

[0012] According to another feature, the inverter has cooling fins for cooling the heat generating components and the cooling fins pass through an opening in the wall of the housing to be exposed to the air stream. of the fan. Such cooling ribs are always used if the housing wall alone does not allow a sufficiently strong heat exchange with the air stream despite, where appropriate, an inclined positioning of the fan installed in the wall of the inverter housing. Contrary to the state of the art according to which the thermal conductivity is done only by the fins, it is nevertheless possible to reduce the size of the cooling surface or the number of cooling fins compared to the state of the art because for at least some of the components releasing heat, the heat will be evacuated via the thermal path towards the housing wall.

[0013] According to an advantageous constructive arrangement of the inverter housing, the housing wall is on the suction side of the fan.

[0014] For good manufacturing conditions and excellent corrosion protection and low weight, it is further preferable that at least the housing wall is made of aluminum.

[0015] As already indicated, it is provided in particular that the inverter is used to control a compressor to compress the refrigerant.

[0016] The invention also relates to heating a building with a heat pump produced and used as described above. Brief description of the drawings

[0017] The present invention will be described below in more detail with the aid of the embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

[0018] [Fig. 1] simplified longitudinal sectional view of a first heat pump of a building heating system in the area of ​​the heat pump housing,

[0019] [Fig.2] Perspective view of a heat transmission element, made as die-cast part as a component of the heat pump according to [Fig.l],

[0020] [Fig.3] partial sectional view of a heat pump variant compared to [Fig.l].

[0021] DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

[0022] The same elements or elements of similar function bear the same references in the different figures.

[0023] [Fig.l] is a highly simplified detail view of a heat pump 10 of a building heating installation 100. The heat pump 10 has a heat pump housing 12 which is characteristically parallelepipedal; it consists of an outer housing area for evaporating by ambient air, a refrigerant circulating in the outer housing area inside tubular elements 14 through the heat pump housing 12 for a refrigerant and supplying a non-detailed heat exchanger.

[0024] To facilitate evaporation, the interior of the heat pump housing 12 is equipped with a fan 16 with an axial rotor 18. The tube elements 14 are in the area of ​​the front side 19 of the heat pump housing 12 and in the heat pump housing 12 on the suction side of the rotor 18. In operation, the fan 16 or its rotor 18 generates an air stream, the passage of which is shown diagrammatically by the flow arrows 28.

[0025] Between the tube elements 14 and the fan rotor 18 according to the representation of [Fig.l], in the upper area of ​​the heat pump housing 12 there is an inverter housing 22 as a component of an inverter 25. The inverter 25 which converts the alternating current into direct current and then back into alternating current, operates an undetailed compressor compressing the evaporated refrigerant in the heat pump housing 12.

[0026] To save weight, the inverter housing 22 can be made of plastic or aluminum and preferably is bowl-shaped. To prevent dirt, dust or the like from entering the inverter housing 22, the side of the housing 22 facing the air stream is closed. In the embodiment shown, this corresponds to at least one area of ​​the inverter housing 22 that is made of metal, in particular a housing wall 26 made of aluminum. The housing wall 26 can also be the metal wall of the inverter housing 22 itself.

[0027] The housing wall 26, which forms an acute angle (a) typically between 10° and 60° relative to the horizontal plane 27 or the air stream, is exposed to the air stream of the fan rotor 18 in order to at least indirectly cool the heat-generating components 28, 29 of the inverter 25 housed in the housing 22. In particular, the components 28, 29 are installed on a circuit carrier in the form of a printed circuit board 30. The circuit board 30 or the components 28, 29 are thermally coupled to the housing wall 26 by at least one heat-conducting element 32. The heat-conducting element 32 of the illustrated embodiment is in the form of a heat-transmitting element 35 as shown in [Fig. 3].

[0028] The heat transfer element 35 has a fin structure with domes or raised areas to be in conductive contact with the heat generating components 28, 29; in the illustrated embodiment, they are in contact with the underside 38 of the circuit board 30 opposite the heat releasing components 28, 29. Furthermore, the heat transfer element 35 is coupled by a thermally conductive label 40 which forms another thermally conductive element 32 thermally coupled to the housing wall 26.

[0029] The size or volume of the housing wall 26 as well as the angle (a) are designed specifically according to the application so that the operation of the inverter 35 avoids any thermal overload of the inverter 25 by the components 28, 29 releasing heat. In particular for lower losses or reduced thermal radiation, the housing wall 26 makes it possible to tend to reduce the angle (a) to reduce the pressure loss of the air stream in the heat pump housing 12. Thus, it is in particular provided that for smaller quantities of heat to be evacuated, the angle (a) is equal to 0°, that is to say that the housing wall 26 will be in the horizontal plane 27.

[0030] [Fig. 2] shows a part of a heat pump 10a, as a variant of that of FIGS. 1 and 3. The heat pump 10a is mainly characterized in that the housing wall 26a has a passage cutout 42, in particular of rectangular shape through which the cooling fins 44 of a cooling member 45 of the inverter 25 can pass. The cooling fins 44 only serve to dissipate relatively high amounts of heat or losses, i.e. amounts of heat which can only be discharged to the environment via the housing wall 26 alone. However, even in this case, the cooling member 45 functioning in the exemplary embodiment as a heat transmission element 35a can be additionally connected by a heat-conducting element 32 in the form of the heat-conducting label 40, being thermally connected to the housing wall 26a for evacuate heat to the environment.The cooling member 45 protrudes from the passage 42. Furthermore, the cooling member 45 is connected by the thermally conductive label 40 to the circuit board 30.

[0031] As a variant of the embodiment of [Fig.2], the housing wall 26a can be installed in analogy with the housing wall 26 to improve thermal transmission, at an angle (a) relative to the horizontal plane 27.

[0032] The heat pump 10, 10a described can be adapted or modified in many ways without departing from the scope of the invention. Thus, it is not essential to use a heat transmission element 35, 35a. Depending on the arrangement of the circuit board 30 or the heat-generating components 28, 29, it is also possible to envisage the circuit board 30 or the components 28, 29 alone with the interposition of a heat-conducting label, preferably non-electro-conducting, thermally coupled to the wall 26, 26a of the housing.

[0033] NOMENCLATURE OF MAIN ELEMENTS

[0034] 10 Heat pump

[0035] 100 Building heating installation

[0036] 12 Heat pump housing

[0037] 14 Tubular element

[0038] 16 Fan

[0039]

[0040]

[0041]

[0042]

[0043]

[0044]

[0045]

[0046]

[0047]

[0048]

[0049]

[0050]

[0051]

[0052]

[0053] 18 Axial rotor 19 Housing front 22 Inverter housing 25 Inverter 26 Housing wall 27 Horizontal plane 28 Heat-dissipating component 28 Arrow showing flow diagram 29 Heat-dissipating component 30 Printed circuit board 32 Heat-conducting element 35 Heat-transmitting element 40 Heat-conducting label 44 Cooling fin 45 Inverter cooling element

Claims

Claims

1. Heat pump (10; 10a) for heating a building (100) comprising a heat pump housing (12) housing a fan (16) for at least indirectly cooling heat-generating components (28, 29) of an inverter (25; 25a), - the inverter (25; 25a) being housed in an inverter housing (22), - the inverter (25; 25a) being at least indirectly connected to a housing wall (26; 26a) at least partially made of metal, which is swept by the air stream generated by a fan (16), and - at least a part of the heat-generating components (28, 29) being thermally connected at least indirectly by at least one heat-conducting element (32) with the metal region of the housing wall (26; 26a).

2. Heat pump according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one heat-conducting element (32) is designed as a heat-conducting label (40).

3. Heat pump according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that at least the heat-conducting element (32) is designed as a heat transfer element (35; 35') made of metal, in at least indirect contact with a heat-releasing component (28, 29).

4. Heat pump according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the housing wall (26) is installed at an inclined angle (a) relative to the air stream generated by the fan (16).

5. Heat pump according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the inverter (25a) or at least one cooling member (45) thermally coupled to the inverter (25a) comprises cooling fins (44) for cooling the heat-generating component (28, 29), and - a cooling member (45) with cooling fins (44) being thermally coupled to the inverter (25fa) for cooling the heat-generating components (28, 29), and - the cooling fins (44) pass through an opening (42) in the housing wall (26a) and are exposed to the air stream.

6. Heat pump according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the housing wall (26; 26a) is located on the suction side of the fan (16).

7. Heat pump according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that at least the housing wall (26; 26a) is made of aluminum.

8. Heat pump according to claim 7, characterized in that the inverter housing (22) is made of aluminum.

9. Heat pump according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the inverter (25; 25a) serves to control a compressor for compressing the refrigerant.

10. Building heating (100) comprising a heat pump (10; 10a) according to one of claims 1 to 9.

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