Air conditioner

Abstract

To provide an air conditioner of a novel configuration capable of effectively agitating air indoors by simple control.SOLUTION: An air conditioner includes: a housing provided with a blowout port blowing out the air indoors; a vertical wind direction plate provided for the blowout port and adjusting a wind direction of the air in the vertical direction; a horizontal wind direction plate provided for the blowout port and adjusting the wind direction blown out indoors; and a control part controlling the vertical wind direction plate and the horizontal wind direction plate. The control part vertically oscillates the vertical wind direction plate in a first cycle while blowing the air out of the blowout port, and horizontally oscillates the horizontal wind direction plate in a second cycle different from the first cycle.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 7

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to an air conditioning apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] In an air conditioner that blows air into a room, for example, an operation may be performed in which the vertical and horizontal louvers are swung to stir the air in the room. For example, in the technology of Patent Document 1, the oscillation amplitude, bottom dead center holding time or left dead center holding time, oscillation speed, etc. of the vertical and horizontal louvers are determined based on chaos data, and the vertical and horizontal louvers are swung. This allows a natural air flow to be formed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2001-108280 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the technology of Patent Document 1 requires complex control because it uses chaos data. Also, the technology of Patent Document 1 aims to form a natural airflow, and the operation of the up-down and left-right airflow vanes is not optimal for diffusing air.

[0005] One example of a problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an air conditioner of a novel configuration that can effectively agitate indoor air with simple control. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An air conditioning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a housing provided with an air outlet for blowing air into a room, an up-down air deflector provided at the air outlet for adjusting the direction of the air blown into the room in an up-down direction, a left-right air deflector provided at the air outlet for adjusting the direction of the air blown into the room in a left-right direction, and a control unit for controlling the up-down air deflector and the left-right air deflector, wherein the control unit executes a stirring mode in which the up-down air deflector is swung up and down at a first period while blowing the air out of the air outlet, and the left-right air deflector is swung left and right at a second period different from the first period.

[0007] In the air conditioning device, for example, the upper and lower air deflectors include a plurality of first upper and lower air deflectors divided to be aligned in the width direction of the air outlet, and in the stirring mode, the control unit oscillates adjacent first upper and lower air deflectors of the plurality of first upper and lower air deflectors in the width direction of the air outlet with a phase shift.

[0008] In the air conditioning device, for example, the multiple first upper and lower air deflectors are arranged toward the upper side in the height direction of the air outlet, and the multiple upper and lower air deflectors further include second upper and lower air deflectors arranged toward the lower side in the height direction of the air outlet, and in the stirring mode, the control unit oscillates the multiple first upper and lower air deflectors while fixing the second upper and lower air deflectors in a predetermined position.

[0009] In the air conditioning device, for example, the left and right air deflectors include a plurality of left and right air deflectors divided so as to be aligned in the width direction of the air outlet, and in the stirring mode, the control unit oscillates the left and right air deflectors adjacent to each other in the width direction of the air outlet by shifting their phases.

[0010] The air conditioning apparatus includes, for example, a plurality of operation modes in which the manner in which the air is blown into the room is different, and the stirring mode can be used in combination with some of the plurality of operation modes.

[0011] In the air conditioning device, for example, when the control unit receives a transition signal from an operation terminal instructing a transition to the stirring mode when one of the plurality of operating modes that can be used in conjunction with the stirring mode is selected, the control unit transitions to the stirring mode, and when the control unit receives the transition signal from the operation terminal when an operating mode other than the one of the plurality of operating modes is selected, the control unit notifies at least one of the housing and the operation terminal of an error.

[0012] In the air conditioning device, for example, when the control unit receives a cancellation signal from the operation terminal instructing the cancellation of the stirring mode, it cancels the stirring mode and controls the upper and lower air deflectors and the left and right air deflectors to return to the wind direction before transitioning to the stirring mode.

[0013] The air conditioning device further includes, for example, a sensor that detects the position of a living organism present in the room, and when the control unit receives a transition signal from the operation terminal instructing the control unit to transition to a wind direction control mode in which the wind direction is controlled based on the detection result of the sensor, the control unit transitions to the wind direction control mode, and if the stirring mode is selected when the transition signal is received, the stirring mode is cancelled and the control unit transitions to the wind direction control mode.

[0014] In the air conditioning device, for example, when the control unit determines that no living body is present in the room based on the detection results of the sensor while the wind direction control mode is selected, the control unit transitions from the wind direction control mode to the stirring mode.

[0015] The air conditioning device further includes, for example, a sensor that detects the cleanliness of the air in the room, and the control unit uses an air purification monitoring function that starts an air purification operation to purify the air based on the detection results of the sensor, and when the air purification operation is started, the control unit also uses the stirring mode for at least a predetermined time from the start of the air purification operation.

[0016] The air conditioning device further includes, for example, a sensor that detects the temperature inside the room, and the control unit uses a high temperature monitoring function that starts fan operation or cooling operation based on the detection result of the sensor, and when the fan operation or cooling operation is started, the control unit also uses the stirring mode for at least a predetermined time from the start of the fan operation or cooling operation.

[0017] According to the above air conditioner, the air in the room can be effectively agitated with simple control. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of an air conditioning system according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of the server according to the embodiment. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of the operation terminal according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of an air conditioner according to an embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of a configuration of an indoor unit according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of an indoor unit according to an embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction vanes and the left / right airflow direction vanes in the agitation mode of the air conditioner according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the upper and lower louvers at a predetermined timing in the agitation mode of the air conditioner according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the left and right louvers at a predetermined timing in the agitation mode of the air conditioner according to the embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a waveform diagram when control is performed to adjust the top and bottom airflow direction vanes and the left and right airflow direction vanes to the start positions of the agitation mode in the air conditioning apparatus according to the embodiment. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction vanes and the left / right airflow direction vanes in the agitation mode of the air conditioner according to the first modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction vanes and the left / right airflow direction vanes in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the second modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction flap and the left / right airflow direction flap in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to a third modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example in which the movement of the left and right louvers is biased in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the fourth modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example in which the movement of the upper and lower louvers is biased in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the fourth modified example of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] Hereinafter, an embodiment of an air conditioning device according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification, components according to the embodiment and descriptions of the components may be described in multiple ways. The components and their descriptions are merely examples and are not limited by the expressions in this specification. The components may also be identified by names different from those in this specification. In addition, the components may also be described by expressions different from those in this specification.

[0020] In addition, the drawings are schematic, and the dimensional relationships and ratios of each element may differ from reality. Furthermore, the drawings may include parts whose dimensional relationships and ratios differ from one another. In this specification, ordinal numbers are used only to distinguish between parts, members, sites, positions, directions, etc., and do not indicate order or priority.

[0021] (Example of air conditioning system configuration) 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of an air conditioning system 1 according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the air conditioning system 1 of the embodiment includes an air conditioning apparatus 10, an operation terminal 300, and a server 200.

[0022] The air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300 are connected to enable communication with the server 200 via a network NW, such as a wide area network like the Internet. The air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300 may be connected to each other via a communication adapter (not shown) or the like, so as to enable wireless communication. The air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300 may also be configured to be connected to each other so as to enable wired communication via a communication cable, such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable.

[0023] The air conditioner 10 is an example of a home appliance and includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit (not shown). Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, the air conditioner 10 refers exclusively to the indoor unit of the indoor unit and outdoor unit.

[0024] The air conditioner 10 is configured to operate in a number of air conditioning operation modes, such as cooling operation, heating operation, ventilation, air purification operation, and dehumidification, and to be capable of blowing out conditioned air of different types into the room according to each of the multiple air conditioning operation modes. The air conditioner 10 is also configured to be capable of operating in a stirring mode in addition to the above-mentioned multiple air conditioning operation modes. In the stirring mode, the air conditioner 10 can stir the air in the room. The air conditioner 10 may have modes other than those mentioned above.

[0025] The operation terminal 300 is a mobile terminal such as a smartphone, tablet, or mobile phone, and is configured to be able to operate the air conditioning apparatus 10 and obtain various information from the air conditioning apparatus 10 by communicating with the server 200 via the network NW.

[0026] However, the operation terminal 300 may also be a remote controller or the like that operates the air conditioning apparatus 10. In this case, the operation terminal 300 may be capable of directly operating the air conditioning apparatus 10 and acquiring information from the air conditioning apparatus 10 via wireless communication or the like. Furthermore, the operation terminal 300 may include both a mobile terminal that sends and receives information to and from the air conditioning apparatus 10 via the network NW, and a remote controller that sends and receives information to and from the air conditioning apparatus 10 via wireless communication.

[0027] The server 200 is configured with a well-known computer system. The server 200 stores various information for accessing the air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300, various computer programs including application software, and the like, and is configured to be able to distribute this various information and programs. Information for accessing the air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300 may be, for example, the IP (Internet Protocol) addresses of the air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300.

[0028] (Server configuration example) 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of the server 200 according to the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the server 200 includes a control unit 201, a communication unit 202, a clock unit 203, and a storage unit 205.

[0029] The control unit 201 is configured as a computer having a central processing unit (CPU), a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), etc. (not shown). For example, the CPU loads a program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executes it, thereby realizing various functions of the server 200.

[0030] The control unit 201 includes an operation information acquisition unit 211, a device information acquisition unit 212, an instruction unit 213, and a provision unit 214 as functional units realized by, for example, a CPU that executes a program.

[0031] The operation information acquisition unit 211 acquires operation signals for operating the air conditioning device 10, such as starting and stopping the operation of the air conditioning device 10, switching between various air conditioning operation modes, setting the temperature, setting the timer, and starting and stopping the stirring mode, from the operation terminal 300 via the network NW.

[0032] The device information acquisition unit 212 acquires information about the current state of the air conditioning device 10 from the air conditioning device 10. The state of the air conditioning device 10 includes whether the air conditioning device 10 is operating or stopped, the selected air conditioning operation mode, the temperature setting value, the timer setting value, whether a stirring mode or the like is selected, as well as any errors that have occurred in the air conditioning device 10.

[0033] The instruction unit 213 transmits the operation signal from the operation terminal 300 acquired by the operation information acquisition unit 211 to the air conditioner 10. As a result, the air conditioner 10 performs various operations in accordance with the operation signal.

[0034] The providing unit 214 provides the information about the air conditioning apparatus 10 acquired by the apparatus information acquiring unit 212 to the operation terminal 300. This enables the user to know the status of the air conditioning apparatus 10, etc.

[0035] Furthermore, when the operation terminal 300 is a mobile terminal or the like, the provision unit 214 provides the operation terminal 300 with application software 251, which is stored in the storage unit 205 and enables access to the air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300. By downloading the application software 251 from the server 200 and installing it in advance in the operation terminal 300, the user can operate the air conditioning apparatus 10 from the operation terminal 300 via the server 200, and can also obtain various types of information from the air conditioning apparatus 10.

[0036] The communication unit 202 is a communication circuit or the like that realizes a communication function for communicating with an external device. In the server 200 of the embodiment, the communication unit 202 establishes communication with the air conditioning apparatus 10 and the operation terminal 300.

[0037] The timekeeping unit 203 is a timer or the like that keeps track of time or date and time.

[0038] The storage unit 205 is configured with a storage device such as a hard disk drive (HDD). The storage unit 205 stores various information and data. As an example, the storage unit 205 stores application software 251 that enables access to the air conditioning device 10 and the operation terminal 300. As described above, the application software 251 can also be distributed to the operation terminal 300, which is, for example, a mobile terminal.

[0039] As described above, the programs executed by the server 200 of the embodiment are provided by being pre-installed in, for example, a ROM included in the control unit 201.

[0040] The program executed by the server 200 of the embodiment may be configured to be provided by recording it on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), or a USB memory in an installable or executable format file.

[0041] The program executed by the server 200 of the embodiment may be stored in a computer such as a server connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. The program executed by the server 200 of the embodiment may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

[0042] The program executed by the server 200 of the embodiment has a modular configuration including each of the above-mentioned functional units of the control unit 201, and in terms of actual hardware, the CPU of the control unit 201 reads the program from the ROM and executes it, whereby each of the above-mentioned functional units is loaded onto a main storage device such as a RAM, and generated on the main storage device.

[0043] The functions of the operation information acquisition unit 211, the device information acquisition unit 212, the instruction unit 213, the provision unit 214, and the like of the control unit 201 may be realized by hardware.

[0044] (Example of operation terminal configuration) 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of an operation terminal 300 according to an embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, the operation terminal 300 includes a control unit 301, a communication unit 302, a display unit 303, an operation unit 304, and a storage unit 305.

[0045] The control unit 301 is configured as a computer having a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. (not shown). For example, the CPU deploys a program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executes it, thereby realizing various functions of the operation terminal 300.

[0046] The control unit 301 includes an acquisition unit 311, a display control unit 312, and an instruction unit 313 as functional units realized by, for example, a CPU that executes a program.

[0047] The acquisition unit 311 acquires various information related to the air conditioning apparatus 10, such as the state of the air conditioning apparatus 10, via the server 200.

[0048] The display control unit 312 causes the display unit 303 to display various information related to the air conditioning apparatus 10 acquired from the air conditioning apparatus 10. The display control unit 312 also causes the display unit 303 to display the contents of operations performed on the operation terminal 300 by the user.

[0049] The instruction unit 313 transmits various instruction contents from the user inputted from the operation unit 304 to the air conditioning apparatus 10 via the server 200 in the form of various operation signals, for example.

[0050] The communication unit 302 is a communication circuit or the like that realizes a communication function for communicating with an external device. In the operation terminal 300 of the embodiment, the communication unit 302 establishes communication with the server 200. Note that a communication line may be established between the operation terminal 300 and the air conditioning apparatus 10 to communicatively connect the operation terminal 300 and the air conditioning apparatus 10.

[0051] The display unit 303 is configured by a display device such as a liquid crystal panel.

[0052] The operation unit 304 is composed of touch panel switches formed on the display screen of the display unit 303, mechanical switches provided around the display unit 303, and the like.

[0053] The programs executed by the operation terminal 300 of the embodiment include, in addition to a program preinstalled in the ROM of the control unit 301, for example, the application software 251 downloaded and installed from the server 200 described above.

[0054] In addition, the application software 251 executed on the operation terminal 300 of the embodiment may be configured to be provided by recording it in an installable or executable format on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, a flexible disk (FD), a CD-R, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), or a USB memory.

[0055] The application software 251 executed on the operation terminal 300 of the embodiment has a modular configuration including each of the above-mentioned functional units of the control unit 301, and in terms of actual hardware, the CPU of the control unit 301 reads the application software 251 from the ROM and executes it, thereby loading the various functions described above into a main storage device such as a RAM, and generating them on the main storage device.

[0056] (Example of air conditioning device configuration) Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an air conditioning apparatus 10 according to an embodiment. As shown in Fig. 4, the air conditioning apparatus 10 has an indoor unit 11 and an outdoor unit 12. The indoor unit 11 is configured to be able to communicate with an operation terminal 300 via a server 200. If the operation terminal 300 is a remote controller or the like, the indoor unit 11 and the operation terminal 300 may be able to communicate directly, in which case the operation terminal 300 may be included in the configuration of the air conditioning apparatus 10.

[0057] The indoor unit 11 is disposed indoors, and the outdoor unit 12 is disposed outdoors. The operation terminal 300 receives an operation instruction from a user, and transmits an operation signal to the indoor unit 11 in response to the received operation instruction.

[0058] Based on an operation signal from the operation terminal 300, the indoor unit 11 performs air conditioning processing on air drawn in from inside the room, and blows out the conditioned air that has been subjected to the air conditioning processing into the room.

[0059] The air conditioning process includes, for example, heat absorption process (cooling), heating process (heating), dehumidification process, humidification process, air blowing process, and air cleaning process. The heat absorption process, heating process, dehumidification process, humidification process, air blowing process, and air cleaning process correspond to the air conditioning operation modes of the air conditioner 10, namely, the cooling operation mode, the heating operation mode, the dehumidification operation mode, the humidification operation mode, the air blowing operation mode, and the air cleaning operation mode, respectively. Note that the air conditioning operation mode may also include an operation mode that blows out unconditioned air, such as the air blowing operation mode. For this reason, the air conditioning operation mode may also be called the main operation mode. Therefore, in this specification, the conditioned air may include, for example, air supplied by the air blowing operation mode.

[0060] In addition, the various air conditioning operation modes listed above may be divided into more detailed modes. For example, in various air conditioning operation modes, the air conditioner 10 may have a rapid mode such as rapid cooling, rapid heating, rapid dehumidification, and rapid humidification, a power-saving cooling mode while performing power-saving control, a power-saving heating mode, etc., and may have an outing mode in which air conditioning operation is continued while suppressing the operation level when the user is absent, etc. Also, for example, the air conditioner 10 may have a weak dehumidification mode, a strong dehumidification mode, a recommended dehumidification mode, etc. as a mode of the dehumidification operation mode, so that the strength of the dehumidification process can be selected, and may have a clothes drying mode that combines the dehumidification process and the heating process. Furthermore, the air conditioner 10 may have an automatic operation mode as an air conditioning operation mode in which the air conditioner operates in a heating operation mode if the temperature detected by the room temperature sensors 117A and 117B is higher than the set temperature, and operates in the heating operation mode if the detected temperature is lower than the set temperature.

[0061] The air conditioning operation mode can be appropriately combined with various control modes such as agitation mode, windless feeling (registered trademark) mode, and wind direction control mode. In the agitation mode or wind direction control mode, the air conditioner 10 controls the up-down air direction vanes 115 and the left-right air direction vanes 116 described later to agitate the air in the room, or to actively direct wind at or block wind from living bodies CR such as people in the room. In the windless feeling mode, the air conditioner 10 uses the ventilation members 114 described later to make the released wind a gentle wind flow overall, and can control the blowing out of the conditioned air so as to obtain a windless feeling.

[0062] Among these control modes, for example, the stirring mode is used in combination with the cooling operation mode, the dehumidification operation mode, the humidification operation mode, the ventilation operation mode, and the air purification operation mode among the above-mentioned multiple air conditioning operation modes. On the other hand, it is not assumed that the stirring mode is used in combination with, for example, the heating operation mode, the automatic operation mode, or the clothes drying mode. The air conditioning operation modes with which the stirring mode can be used in combination are determined in advance based on, for example, the needs of the user. In particular, in air conditioning operation modes such as the heating operation mode that blows warm air into the room, a similar effect can be obtained by sending warm air to the lower part of the room without using the stirring mode. For this reason, it is desirable to prevent the stirring mode from being used in combination with such air conditioning operation modes such as the heating operation mode.

[0063] In addition, the air conditioning operation modes that cannot be used in conjunction with the agitation mode include the rapid mode, the going out mode, and the energy-saving cooling mode. This is because the agitation mode, the rapid mode, the going out mode, and the energy-saving cooling mode include mutually contradictory controls. Similarly, the agitation mode cannot be used in conjunction with control modes such as the windless mode and the wind direction control mode.

[0064] Other functions of the air conditioner 10 include, for example, a timer setting function, an air cleaning watch function, a high temperature watch function, and an interior cleaning function.

[0065] The air conditioning device 10 can use the timer setting function to start or end air conditioning operation at a specified time or after a specified time has elapsed. At this time, the air conditioning device 10 can obtain information on the current time or elapsed time from the timer unit 203 provided in the server 200.

[0066] Furthermore, when indoor air pollution is detected by air purification unit 118 described later, the air conditioner 10 automatically starts air purification processing using an air purification monitoring function. Furthermore, the air conditioner 10 starts fan operation using a high temperature monitoring function when room temperature sensors 117A, 117B described later indicate that the room temperature is above a predetermined temperature, and starts cooling operation when the room temperature becomes even higher. Furthermore, the air conditioner 10 irradiates the inside of the indoor unit 11 with ultraviolet rays or the like using an internal cleaning function to purify the inside of the indoor unit 11.

[0067] In order to realize the above-mentioned functions, the indoor unit 11 of the air conditioning apparatus 10 of the embodiment is equipped with a control unit 111, a heat exchanger 112, a fan 113, ventilation members 114, upper and lower air deflectors 115, left and right air deflectors 116, room temperature sensors 117A, 117B, a radar 117C, a particle detection sensor 117D, an air purification unit 118, and a communication unit 119.

[0068] The heat exchanger 112 has, for example, a flow path and a plurality of fins (not shown). The flow path is provided inside the air conditioning device 10 and is connected to a refrigerant pipe through which a refrigerant flows. The heat exchanger 112 exchanges heat between the air drawn from inside the room and the refrigerant passing through the flow path.

[0069] The fan 113 is disposed near the heat exchanger 112. The fan 113 guides air drawn from inside the room through an inlet port of the indoor unit 11 to the heat exchanger 112, and also guides conditioned air that has been heat exchanged in the heat exchanger 112 to an outlet port of the indoor unit 11. The fan 113 is driven by a fan motor 143, and the fan motor 143 is controlled by a drive circuit 133. The drive circuit 133 rotates the fan 113 around its rotation axis using the fan motor 143, and is also capable of changing the rotation speed of the fan 113, etc.

[0070] The ventilation member 114 is formed in a plate shape aligned in the width direction of the air outlet of the indoor unit 11, and has multiple ventilation holes that open in the plate thickness direction. As described below, the ventilation member 114 is deployed to a position that blocks part of the air outlet in the no-wind mode. The ventilation member 114 is rotated to the deployed position or the stored position by a switching motor 144, and the switching motor 144 is controlled by a drive circuit 134.

[0071] The up-down air deflector 115 and the left-right air deflector 116 are each provided at the air outlet of the indoor unit 11, and adjust the direction of the conditioned air blown into the room. The air direction is the direction in which the conditioned air blows out from the air outlet of the indoor unit 11. The up-down air deflector 115 faces at a predetermined angle in the vertical direction to adjust the direction of the conditioned air in the vertical direction. The left-right air deflector 116 faces at a predetermined angle in the horizontal direction to adjust the direction of the conditioned air in the horizontal direction.

[0072] In this specification, the direction in which the vertical airflow direction vanes 115 and the horizontal airflow direction vanes 116 face is assumed to be approximately the same as the direction (wind direction) of the conditioned air immediately after it is blown out from the air outlet of the indoor unit 11. In other words, the vertical airflow direction vanes 115 and the horizontal airflow direction vanes 116 can adjust the wind direction of the conditioned air by adjusting their orientation. The vertical airflow direction vanes 115 and the horizontal airflow direction vanes 116 can each be changed in orientation individually. This makes it possible to blow out air with a uniform wind direction from the entire air outlet of the indoor unit 11, or to blow out two or more conditioned airs with different wind directions from two or more areas of the air outlet of the indoor unit 11 partitioned by the vertical airflow direction vanes 115, the horizontal airflow direction vanes 116, etc.

[0073] The vertical louvers 115 are driven by a vertical louver motor 145, and the horizontal louvers 116 are driven by a horizontal louver motor 146. The vertical louver motor 145 and the horizontal louver motor 146 are both controlled by a drive circuit 135.

[0074] Room temperature sensor 117A is provided, for example, near the air inlet of indoor unit 11 and detects the temperature of the air near the air inlet. Room temperature sensor 117B is, for example, an infrared sensor or the like and detects the temperature inside the room and the temperature of the walls inside the room. For example, by detecting the temperature with an infrared sensor or the like, room temperature sensor 117B may be able to detect the temperature distribution inside the room and the walls inside the room.

[0075] The radar 117C can detect the position, moving speed, angle, shape, height from the floor surface, etc. of a detection target in a room. The radar 117C is an ultrasonic radar, a millimeter wave radar, a microwave radar, a Doppler radar such as a lidar, etc. The radar 117C has a transmitting unit 71a, a receiving unit 71b, and a signal processing unit 71c.

[0076] The signal processing unit 71c generates radio waves such as millimeter waves and microwaves, sound waves, and light. The transmitting unit 71a transmits the radio waves, sound waves, light, and the like generated by the signal processing unit 71c into the room. The receiving unit 71b receives reflected waves reflected by a detection target such as a living body CR present in the room and passes them to the signal processing unit 71c.

[0077] The radar 117C is an example of a biological sensor. However, the air conditioning device 10 may be provided with other sensors, such as an infrared sensor or a camera, instead of or in addition to the radar 117C as a biological sensor to determine whether the detection target is a living body CR.

[0078] The air conditioning device 10 of the embodiment uses a radar 117C provided in the indoor unit 11 to detect detection targets present in the room in which the indoor unit 11 is installed. In the air conditioning device 10 of the embodiment, the detection targets of the radar 117C are mainly living organisms CR such as humans and pets. However, the detection targets of the radar 117C may also include furniture such as chairs, sofas, and beds placed in the room, or walls. This makes it possible for the radar 117C to detect the size and volume of the room in which the indoor unit 11 is installed.

[0079] The air conditioning device 10 of the embodiment changes the control mode so as to supply conditioned air suitable for the living organism CR present in the room, based on information about the living organism CR among the detection targets detected by the radar 117C. The above-mentioned wind direction control mode is an example of such a control mode of the air conditioning device 10. In the wind direction control mode, the air conditioning device 10 can operate to actively blow wind against the living organism CR, or to block wind.

[0080] When a detection target enters a room, moves within the room, or moves at least a part of itself even if it remains in a specified position within the room, the air conditioning device 10 detects the entrance action, movement action, behavior, etc. of the detection target and determines that the detection target is a living organism CR. On the other hand, the air conditioning device 10 regards objects that remain continuously stationary, such as furniture or walls, as non-living objects, and excludes them from the objects that are reflected in the operation control when operating in the wind direction control mode, etc.

[0081] Additionally, the air conditioning apparatus 10 may determine whether or not a detection target is a living organism CR based on the shape, movement, pulsation, or the like of the detection target.

[0082] The particle detection sensor 117D can be configured using known technology, such as an optical sensor.

[0083] The air purification unit 118 performs air purification processing in response to an operation signal from the operation terminal 300, or automatically by an air purification monitoring function.

[0084] The air purification process is carried out, for example, by an ion emission method that releases ions into the air, an ultraviolet irradiation method that sterilizes the air taken into the indoor unit 11 by irradiating it with ultraviolet rays, and a dust collection method that collects dust when the air in the room is sucked into the indoor unit 11.

[0085] In addition, in the ultraviolet irradiation method, not only the air taken into the indoor unit 11 but also the inside of the indoor unit 11 may be cleaned.

[0086] Dust collection methods include, for example, filter dust collection and electric dust collection. In the filter dust collection method, contaminants such as dust are removed from the air by passing the air through a fine filter such as a HEPA filter to filter out the contaminants. In the electric dust collection method, contaminants such as dust contained in the sucked air are charged by high-voltage discharge and are adsorbed onto a dust collection mechanism such as the heat exchanger 112 or a filter charged with the opposite polarity, thereby capturing the contaminants. The contaminants adsorbed onto the heat exchanger 112 can be automatically discharged outdoors together with the condensed water that has condensed on the surface of the heat exchanger 112, for example, when the condensed water is discharged.

[0087] The air purification unit 118 includes mechanisms for various air purification processing methods, and detects the degree of contamination (cleanliness) of the air in the room using a particle detection sensor 117D, and automatically starts air purification processing using an air purification monitoring function.

[0088] The communication unit 119 is a communication circuit or the like that realizes a communication function for communicating with an external device. In the air conditioning apparatus 10 of the embodiment, the communication unit 119 establishes communication with the server 200. Note that a communication line may be established between the operation terminal 300 and the air conditioning apparatus 10 so that the operation terminal 300 and the air conditioning apparatus 10 are communicatively connected.

[0089] The control unit 111 is configured as a computer having a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. (not shown). For example, the CPU loads a program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executes it, thereby comprehensively controlling each part of the indoor unit 11 and realizing the various functions of the indoor unit 11 described above.

[0090] The control unit 111 performs air conditioning processing in response to, for example, an operation signal from the operation terminal 300. At this time, the control unit 111 controls the drive circuit 133 to drive the fan 113 and circulates air inside and outside the indoor unit 11. At this time, the control unit 111 also adjusts the temperature of the conditioned air blown out from the indoor unit 11 based on the detection results of the room temperature sensors 117A and 117B.

[0091] Furthermore, the control unit 111 controls the orientation of the up / down air deflectors 115 and the left / right air deflectors 116, or controls the position of the ventilation members 114, depending on the control mode selected by the operation terminal 300, etc. In other words, the control unit 111 controls the drive circuit 135 to drive the up / down air deflectors 115 and the left / right air deflectors 116, and controls the drive circuit 134 to drive the ventilation members 114.

[0092] When the stirring mode is selected as the control mode, the control unit 111 swings the up / down air deflector 115 and the left / right air deflector 116 up / down or left / right. When the wind direction control mode is selected as the control mode, the control unit 111 adjusts the orientation of the up / down air deflector 115 and the left / right air deflector 116 according to the position of the living organism CR detected by the radar 117C. At this time, the control unit 111 determines whether the detection target is a living organism CR or not based on the detection result of the radar 117C. When the no-wind mode is selected as the control mode, the control unit 111 deploys the ventilation member 114.

[0093] Furthermore, even when the air conditioning device 10 is not operating, the control unit 111 continues to monitor the detection results of the room temperature sensors 117A, 117B and the particle detection sensor 117D. When the detection results of the room temperature sensors 117A, 117B indicate a predetermined temperature or higher, the control unit 111 starts the fan operation or the cooling operation by the high temperature monitoring function. In the high temperature monitoring function, as an example, the room temperature at which the fan operation starts can be set to, for example, 28°C or higher, and the room temperature at which the cooling operation starts can be set to, for example, 32°C or higher. Furthermore, when the detection result of the particle detection sensor 117D indicates that a predetermined amount of dirt is present in the air, the control unit 111 operates the air purification unit 118 to start the air purification process by the air purification monitoring function.

[0094] The outdoor unit 12 of the air conditioner 10 of the embodiment includes a control unit 121, a heat exchanger 122, a fan 123, a four-way valve 124, and a compressor 125.

[0095] The heat exchanger 122 has, for example, a flow path and a plurality of fins (not shown). A refrigerant circuit (not shown) is provided that passes near the heat exchanger 122, and the heat exchanger 122 is in thermal contact with the refrigerant circuit. The heat exchanger 122 exchanges heat between the outside air and the refrigerant passing through the flow path.

[0096] The fan 123 is disposed near the heat exchanger 122. The fan 123 draws in outside air by rotation and guides it to the heat exchanger 122, and also discharges the outside air that has been heat exchanged in the heat exchanger 122 to the outside of the outdoor unit 12. The fan 123 is driven by a fan motor 163, and the fan motor 163 is controlled by a drive circuit 153. The drive circuit 153 rotates the fan 123 around the rotation axis by the fan motor 163, and is also capable of changing the rotation speed of the fan 123, etc.

[0097] The four-way valve 124 switches the flow path of the refrigerant in the refrigerant circuit between the cooling side and the heating side. The four-way valve 124 is driven by a valve switching motor 164, and the valve switching motor 164 is controlled by a drive circuit 154.

[0098] The compressor 125 compresses the refrigerant and sends it to the above-mentioned refrigerant circuit. The compressor 125 is driven by a compressor motor 165, which is controlled by a drive circuit 155. The drive circuit 155 controls the compressor motor 165 to change the number of cycles of the compressor 125. The number of cycles of the compressor 125 is the number of compression cycles performed per unit time.

[0099] The control unit 121 is configured as a computer having a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. (not shown). For example, the CPU loads a program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executes it, thereby comprehensively controlling each part of the outdoor unit 12 and realizing the various functions of the outdoor unit 12. The control unit 121 is also configured to be able to cooperate with the control unit 111 of the indoor unit 11 described above.

[0100] For example, in a cooling operation mode, the air conditioner 10 switches the four-way valve 124 of the outdoor unit 12 to the cooling side through coordinated control of the control units 111 and 121. The air conditioner 10 also performs a heat absorption process in the heat exchanger 112 of the indoor unit 11, causes the refrigerant to absorb heat from the indoor air, and blows the conditioned air from which the heat has been absorbed into the room. The air conditioner 10 also performs a heat dissipation process in the heat exchanger 122 of the outdoor unit 12, and causes the heat absorbed by the refrigerant to be released to the outside air.

[0101] Furthermore, for example, the air conditioner 10 switches the four-way valve 124 of the outdoor unit 12 to the heating side in a heating operation mode through coordinated control of the control units 111, 121. The air conditioner 10 also performs a heat absorption process in the heat exchanger 122 of the outdoor unit 12, causing the refrigerant to absorb heat from the outside air. The air conditioner 10 also performs a heating process in the heat exchanger 112 of the indoor unit 11, heating the air in the room with the heat absorbed by the refrigerant, and blowing the heated conditioned air into the room.

[0102] (Example of indoor unit configuration) Next, a more specific structure of the indoor unit 11 will be described with reference to Figs. 5 and 6. As shown in Fig. 5 and several drawings thereafter, ±X, ±Y, and ±Z directions are defined in this specification for convenience. The ±X, ±Y, and ±Z directions are mutually perpendicular. The ±X direction is a direction along the width of the indoor unit 11, and the left side facing the indoor unit 11 is the -X direction, and the right side is the +X direction. The ±Y direction is a direction along the front and rear of the indoor unit 11, and the back side of the indoor unit 11 is the -Y direction, and the front side is the +Y direction. The ±Z direction is a direction along the height of the indoor unit 11, and the lower side of the indoor unit 11 is the -Z direction, and the upper side is the +Z direction.

[0103] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the indoor unit 11 according to the embodiment.

[0104] As shown in FIG. 5, the housing 21 of the indoor unit 11 is installed, for example, in a room of a building, by hanging it on a wall or the like. The housing 21 has an upper surface 21a, a lower surface 21b, a front surface 21c, two side surfaces 21d and 21e, and a rear surface 21f, and is formed, for example, in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape extending in the X direction. The side surfaces 21d and 21e of the housing 21 are respectively formed by the side walls 21g and 21h of the housing 21. In addition, a bridge portion 21i of the housing 21 is provided between the two side walls 21g and 21h. The bridge portion 21i forms the upper surface 21a, the lower surface 21b, the front surface 21c, and the rear surface 21f of the housing 21.

[0105] That is, the connecting portion 21i includes an upper surface 21a that is provided at or near the upper end (+Z direction) of the housing 21 and faces approximately upward, and a lower surface 21b that is provided at or near the lower end (-Z direction) of the housing 21 and faces approximately downward. The connecting portion 21i also includes a front surface 21c that is provided at or near the front end (+Y direction) of the housing 21 and faces approximately forward, and a back surface 21f that is provided at or near the rear end (-Y direction) of the housing 21 and faces approximately backward.

[0106] A room temperature sensor 117B and a transmitter 71a and a receiver 71b of a radar 117C are provided on the front surface 21c of the connecting portion 21i of the housing 21. The room temperature sensor 117B is provided at any position on the front surface 21c of the connecting portion 21i. The transmitter 71a and the receiver 71b of the radar 117C are preferably provided on the front surface 21c of the connecting portion 21i, for example, near the center in the ±X directions, so that an object to be detected in the room can be easily detected.

[0107] An air outlet 33 is opened in the lower surface 21b of the connecting portion 21i of the housing 21. The air outlet 33 is provided with a plurality of up-down air direction plates 115a, 115b, 115c, a plurality of left-right air direction plates 116a, 116b, and a ventilation member 114.

[0108] Among the multiple vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c, the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b as the first airflow direction vanes are arranged in the width direction of the air outlet 33 and are disposed near the upper side of the air outlet 33, and the vertical airflow direction vane 115c as the second airflow direction vane is disposed near the lower side of the air outlet 33. In addition, the vertical airflow direction vane 115c in this embodiment is disposed near the rear (-Y direction) of the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b. The vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c divide the air outlet 33 into two stages, upper and lower. In addition, the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c are driven between a closed position in which the air outlet 33 is closed and an open position in which the air outlet 33 is opened. The vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c are driven by different vertical airflow direction vane motors 145, and can be driven independently of each other. Thereby, each of the vertical louvers 115a to 115c adjusts the vertical direction of the conditioned air.

[0109] 5, two upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b are provided side by side in the width direction of the air outlet 33, but the number of upper and lower air deflectors provided above the air outlet 33 with respect to the upper and lower air deflector 115c is not limited to this. The indoor unit 11 may be provided with only one upper upper and lower air deflector, similar to the upper and lower air deflector 115c, or may be provided with three or more upper and lower air deflectors lined up in the width direction of the air outlet 33.

[0110] Similarly, the number of vertical airflow direction vanes provided below the air outlet 33 with respect to the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b is not limited to the example in Fig. 5. That is, the indoor unit 11 may be provided with a plurality of vertical airflow direction vanes provided below the air outlet 33.

[0111] 5, the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b and the upper and lower airflow direction vane 115c are provided separately above and below the air outlet 33, but the upper and lower airflow direction vanes do not have to be separated in the upper and lower directions of the air outlet 33. In other words, the air outlet 33 may be provided with one or more upper and lower airflow direction vanes arranged in a row in the width direction of the air outlet 33.

[0112] The left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b are provided in the ventilation passage 31 behind the air outlet 33 (in the -Y direction) at positions corresponding to the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b, respectively, and are arranged side by side in the width direction of the air outlet 33. The left and right airflow direction vane 116a includes a plurality of airflow direction vanes 1161, 1162, . . . , 1163, . . . k These wind vanes 1161, 1162, 116 k The left and right wind direction vanes 116a and 116b are driven by a single left and right wind direction vane motor 146 and are driven in conjunction with each other. (k+1) 116 2k These 116 wind vanes are included. (k+1) 116 2k A plurality of wind vanes 1161, 1162, 116 k The left and right vane motors 146 are driven by different motors and are linked to each other.

[0113] That is, the left and right louvers 116a and the left and right louvers 116b are driven by different left and right louver motors 146, respectively, and can be driven independently of each other.

[0114] When the up / down airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c are in the open position, the left / right airflow direction vane 116a, 116b are exposed from the air outlet 33 of the housing 21. At this time, the left / right airflow direction vane 116a is located closer to the -X direction of the air outlet 33, and the left / right airflow direction vane 116b is located closer to the +X direction of the air outlet 33. The left / right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b are arranged such that the center position is perpendicular to the ±X directions, and the respective airflow direction vanes 1161, 1162, ... 116 k ,116 (k+1) 116 2k The tip portion of the actuator is configured so that it can be driven in the left and right directions (±X directions).

[0115] In the example shown in Fig. 5, two left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b are provided side by side in the width direction of the air outlet 33, but the number of left and right airflow direction vanes is not limited to this. The indoor unit 11 may be provided with only one left and right airflow direction vane, or may be provided with three or more left and right airflow direction vanes lined up in the width direction of the air outlet 33. In other words, multiple airflow direction vanes 1161, 1162, ... 116 k ,116 (k+1) 116 2k The left and right louver motors 146 may be configured to be drivable by the same number of left and right louver motors 146 as the number of these combinations.

[0116] The ventilation member 114 is provided, for example, at the upper end of the air outlet 33, and is housed inside the housing 21. As described above, the ventilation member 114 is configured to be rotatable between the deployed position and the stored position, and in the example of FIG.

[0117] Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of the indoor unit 11 according to the embodiment. Fig. 6(a) is a cross-sectional view showing the case where the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c are in a closed state, Fig. 6(b) and (c) are cross-sectional views showing the case where the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a to 115c are in an open state, and Fig. 6(c) further shows the case where the ventilation member 114 is in the deployed position. Note that Fig. 6 omits the illustration of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a and 116b.

[0118] 6, the housing 21 of the indoor unit 11 is provided with an air inlet 32 ​​in addition to the above-mentioned air outlet 33. The air outlet 33 opens to the lower surface 21b of the housing 21, whereas the air inlet 32 ​​opens to, for example, the upper surface 21a of the connecting portion 21i of the housing 21. However, the air inlet 32 ​​and the air outlet 33 may open to other parts of the housing 21.

[0119] An air passage 31 is provided inside the housing 21. An intake port 32 is provided at one end of the air passage 31, and an outlet port 33 is provided at the other end. In other words, the air passage 31 is provided between the intake port 32 and the outlet port 33 inside the housing 21. As a result, the indoor unit 11 causes the air sucked in from the intake port 32 to pass through the air passage 31 and to be blown out from the outlet port 33.

[0120] In the ventilation passage 31, a filter 24, a heat exchanger 112, and a fan 113 are provided.

[0121] As described above, heat exchanger 112 exchanges heat with the surrounding gas in ventilation passage 31. That is, heat exchanger 112 cools the air flowing through ventilation passage 31 during cooling operation, and heats the air flowing through ventilation passage 31 during heating operation.

[0122] The fan 113 rotates about a rotation axis Ax3 extending in the X direction, thereby sending air from the air inlet 32 ​​to the air outlet 33 in the ventilation passage 31, as described above. The fan 113 is located downstream of the heat exchanger 112. As a result, when the fan 113 rotates, the air sucked in from the air inlet 32 ​​passes through the fins of the heat exchanger 112 and exchanges heat with the heat exchanger 112.

[0123] Filter 24 is provided at suction port 32 or near suction port 32 in ventilation passage 31. Filter 24 is located upstream of heat exchanger 112 and covers suction port 32 from the inside of housing 21. Filter 24 filters the air sucked in from suction port 32 to capture dust in the air. As described above, by configuring filter 24 with a HEPA filter or the like, higher quality air purification processing can be achieved.

[0124] The ventilation member 114 is housed in a recess 21j of the housing 21 provided in the vicinity of the air outlet 33. The recess 21j is recessed from an inner wall surface 21k of the housing 21 that forms a part of the ventilation passage 31. The ventilation member 114 is supported on the inner wall surface 21k of the housing 21 by a shaft portion 114x provided on the ventilation member 114 so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis Ax4 extending in the ±X directions.

[0125] As described above, the vertical air deflectors 115a to 115c are provided at the air outlet 33, and are supported by the housing 21 rotatably around a rotation axis Ax5 extending in the ±X directions by the shaft portion 115x that the vertical air deflectors 115a to 115c each have. The vertical air deflectors 115a to 115c have a movable range of an angle from the angle at the closed position to an angle less than the angle at which they overlap in the -Z direction around the rotation axis Ax5.

[0126] 6, the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are also supported by the housing 21 so as to be rotatable about a rotation axis extending in any direction between the ±Y direction and the ±Z direction by an axis portion that the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b each have. The left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b have a movable range of an angle of less than 180° about the rotation axis, and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b will not block the air outlet 33 even when driven to the upper or lower limit in the ±X direction.

[0127] 6(a), the upper and lower louvers 115a to 115c are all in the closed position and block the air outlet 33. The ventilation member 114 is in the stored position and is stored in the recess 21j of the inner wall surface 21k of the housing 21.

[0128] As shown in Fig. 6(b), the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a-115c can be rotated by a predetermined angle around the rotation axis Ax5 by the shaft portion 115x from the closed position of Fig. 6(a) to the open position of the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a-115c. By setting the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a-115c to the open position, the air outlet 33 opens, and a flow path for the conditioned air is formed between the upper end of the air outlet 33 and the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b, and between the vertical airflow direction vane 115c and the air outlet 33.

[0129] The state in which the ventilation members 114 are deployed as shown in FIG. 6(c) is applied when the air conditioning apparatus 10 is operating in the no wind mode, for example.

[0130] 6(c), in a state in which the upper and lower airflow direction plates 115a-115c are in the open position and the air outlet 33 is open, the ventilation member 114 can be moved to the deployed position by rotating the ventilation member 114 by a predetermined angle about the rotation axis Ax4 from the stored position by the shaft portion 114x. As a result, the flow path of the conditioned air formed between the upper end of the air outlet 33 and the upper and lower airflow direction plates 115a, 115b is blocked by the ventilation member 114.

[0131] As described above, the ventilation member 114 has a plurality of ventilation holes that open in the plate thickness direction. Therefore, a portion of the conditioned air passes through the plurality of ventilation holes of the ventilation member 114 and is blown out from the air outlet 33. However, compared with the state in FIG. 6(b) in which the ventilation member 114 is in the stored position, the opening ratio of the flow path between the upper end of the air outlet 33 and the upper and lower air direction plates 115a, 115b is reduced in the state in FIG. 6(c) in which the ventilation member 114 is in the deployed position. This increases the flow speed of the conditioned air passing through this flow path.

[0132] On the other hand, the ventilation member 114 is not provided between the vertical airflow direction vane 115c and the air outlet 33, and even if the ventilation member 114 moves to the deployed position, the aperture ratio of the flow path between the vertical airflow direction vane 115c and the air outlet 33 remains at 100%. In this way, the conditioned air passing through the flow path without any obstruction is a laminar flow, and the flow speed of the conditioned air is maintained lower than that of the conditioned air passing through the flow path blocked by the ventilation member 114 and having a reduced aperture ratio. As a result, the high-speed conditioned air passing through the flow path blocked by the ventilation member 114 draws in the conditioned air passing through the flow path not blocked by the ventilation member 114, collides with the drawn-in conditioned air, and becomes a turbulent flow. In addition, the turbulent high-speed conditioned air diffuses to the flow path not blocked by the ventilation member 114 and further collides with the laminar flow of the conditioned air passing through this flow path.

[0133] In this way, the turbulent flow of the conditioned air passing through the flow paths blocked by the ventilation members 114 and the laminar flow of the conditioned air passing through the flow paths not blocked by the ventilation members 114 interfere with each other in a more complex manner, causing various interactions and generating turbulent flow that diffuses over a wide area. The turbulent flow that diffuses over a wide area is also called mixed wind, and becomes a gentler wind flow than the wind immediately after it is released from the air outlet 33, and becomes a state close to natural wind, in other words, a wind with a feeling of calm.

[0134] As described above, in the windless mode, one of the multiple flow paths formed by the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a-115c and the air outlet 33 is blocked by the ventilation member 114, and winds with different flow speeds are mixed, so that the wind released from the air outlet 33 can be made to provide a windless feeling.

[0135] In addition, the ventilation members 114 may also be provided in pairs, one for each of the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b. When there are three or more upper and lower airflow direction vanes provided above the air outlet 33 for the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115c, the ventilation members 114 may also be provided in the same number as the upper and lower airflow direction vanes.

[0136] (Example of air conditioning unit operation) Next, an example of operation of the air conditioner 10 in the agitation mode will be described using Figs.

[0137] As described above, in the stirring mode, the air conditioner 10 stirs the air in the room by swinging the up-down air deflector 115 and the left-right air deflector 116. In the following, a description will be given assuming that the air conditioner 10 is equipped with three up-down air deflectors 115a-115c and two left-right air deflectors 116a, 116b, as in the example of Fig. 5.

[0138] Fig. 7 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the up-down airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b and the left-right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b in the stirring mode of the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the embodiment. The upper waveform diagram of Fig. 7 shows the movement of the up-down airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b, and the lower waveform diagram shows the movement of the left-right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b.

[0139] 7, the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the up / down vanes 115a, 115b and the left / right vanes 116a, 116b. The upper and lower limit values ​​shown on the vertical axis are the maximum and minimum angles set for the up / down vanes 115a, 115b and the left / right vanes 116a, 116b, and the angle between the upper and lower limit values ​​is the movable range of the up / down vanes 115a, 115b and the left / right vanes 116a, 116b.

[0140] That is, in the waveform diagram in the upper part of FIG. 7, the upper limit value shown on the vertical axis is the rotation angle when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b are fully open, and the lower limit value shown on the vertical axis is the rotation angle when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b are in the closing direction, that is, in the position where they are facing maximum upward. Note that, during air conditioning operation, for example, the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b are not controlled to be in a completely closed position. Also, in the waveform diagram in the lower part of FIG. 7, the right limit value shown on the vertical axis is the rotation angle when the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are facing maximum in the +X direction, and the left limit value shown on the vertical axis is the rotation angle when the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are facing maximum in the -X direction. Also, in the waveform diagram in the lower part of FIG. 7, the position of a rotation angle of 0°, which is the intermediate position between the right limit value and the left limit value, is the rotation angle of the air deflectors 116a, 116b provided with the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b. (k+1) 116 2k This is the position when the tip of the nozzle faces the front of the indoor unit 11, that is, in the +Y direction.

[0141] As shown in the upper part of FIG. 7, the control unit 111 of the air conditioner 10 swings the upper and lower louvers 115a, 115b at a predetermined period T1 while conditioned air is being blown out from the air outlet 33 in the stirring mode.

[0142] In the example of FIG. 7, the control unit 111 swings the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b between the maximum upward position, which is the lower limit of the rotation angle, and the fully open position, which is the upper limit of the rotation angle. In addition, the control unit 111 shifts the phases of the swing of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b so that they do not match. In the example of FIG. 7, the phases of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b are shifted by half the period T1. In other words, the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b are in opposite phase.

[0143] In addition, in the stirring mode, the lower vertical airflow direction vane 115c is stopped at a position that does not interfere with the swinging of the vertical airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b. In this case, it is preferable to fix the vertical airflow direction vane 115c at an open position that is less than the fully open position. This can suppress dew dripping from the vertical airflow direction vane 115c.

[0144] As shown in the lower part of Fig. 7, in the stirring mode, the control unit 111 swings the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b at a predetermined period T2 while swinging the up and down air deflectors 115a, 115b as shown in the upper part of Fig. 7. At this time, the control unit 111 makes the swing period T2 of the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b different from the swing period T1 of the up and down air deflectors 115a, 115b.

[0145] 7, the period T2 is longer than the period T1 by a time Δt1. As an example, the period T1 can be set to be equal to or greater than 18 seconds and equal to or less than 22 seconds, and the period T2 can be set to be equal to or greater than 22 seconds and equal to or less than 26 seconds.

[0146] In the example of Fig. 7, the control unit 111 swings the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b between a position fully swinging in the -X direction, which is the left limit of the rotation angle, and a position fully swinging in the +X direction, which is the right limit of the rotation angle. The control unit 111 also shifts the phases of the swinging of the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b so that they do not match. In the example of Fig. 7, the phases of the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b are shifted by half the period T2. In other words, the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b are in opposite phases.

[0147] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b at a predetermined timing in the stirring mode of the air conditioner 10 according to the embodiment. As shown in Fig. 8, in the stirring mode, the upper and lower airflow direction vanes 115a and 115b swing up and down in different phases. At this time, if the upper and lower airflow vanes 115a and 115b are in opposite phases as in the example of Fig. 7, when the upper and lower airflow vanes 115a are in the maximum upward position, the upper and lower airflow vanes 115b are fully open.

[0148] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the left and right louvers 116a, 116b at a predetermined timing in the agitation mode of the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the embodiment.

[0149] As shown in Fig. 9, in the stirring mode, the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b swing left and right in different phases. In Fig. 9, the positions of the left and right air deflectors 116a and 116b are shown as fully open at all times. As described above, it should be noted that in the actual stirring mode, the up and down air deflectors 115a and 115b are not fully open at the same time.

[0150] As shown in FIG. 9(a), when the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are in opposite phase as in the example of FIG. 7, both the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b face toward the center in the ±X direction at a predetermined timing.

[0151] As shown in FIG. 9(b), at a timing different from that in FIG. 9(a), when the horizontal air deflector 116a is at its full swing in the -X direction, the horizontal air deflector 116b is at its full swing in the +X direction.

[0152] In this way, the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are swung with a period T2 different from the period T1 of the up and down air deflectors 115a, 115b after shifting the phases of the oscillations. By making the period T1 of the up and down air deflectors 115a, 115b and the period T2 of the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b different from each other in this way, it is possible to suppress the creation of a wind that always goes from diagonally upward to diagonally downward, for example, and to efficiently stir the air in the room. In other words, by utilizing the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b, it is possible to create a fluctuating wind and stir the air in the room.

[0153] While the air conditioning apparatus 10 is operating in an air conditioning operation mode such as cooling operation, ventilation, air purification operation, or dehumidification, the user can start or end the agitation mode, for example, using the above-mentioned operation terminal 300. In response to a user's operation, the operation terminal 300 transmits an operation signal, such as a transition signal for transitioning the air conditioning apparatus 10 to the agitation mode or a release signal for termination of the agitation mode of the air conditioning apparatus 10, to the air conditioning apparatus 10 via the server 200 or directly, and the control unit 111 starts or ends the agitation mode.

[0154] During operation in the agitation mode, an air cleaning process may be performed in parallel using the air cleaning function. Also, during operation in the agitation mode, a process for cleaning the inside of the indoor unit 11 may be performed in parallel using the interior cleaning function. Alternatively, during operation in the agitation mode, both the air cleaning process and the process for cleaning the inside of the indoor unit 11 may be used in combination.

[0155] When an air conditioning operation mode such as a heating operation mode that is not intended to be used in combination with the agitation mode, or an air conditioning operation mode or control mode such as a rapid mode or a wind direction control mode that includes control that is contradictory to the agitation mode is selected, the control unit 111 does not start the agitation mode if a user instructs the start of the agitation mode. The control unit 111 also notifies the operation terminal 300 of an error via the server 200 or directly. In addition to notifying the operation terminal 300 of an error, the control unit 111 may also display an error on the housing 21. The error display on the housing 21 may be performed in the form of, for example, lighting a lamp, a warning sound, an error message, etc. The error notification of the operation terminal 300h may also be performed in the form of, for example, lighting a lamp, a warning sound, an error message, etc.

[0156] In air conditioning operation modes that can be used in combination with the stirring mode, in air conditioning operation modes that allow air volume setting, the air volume can be adjusted even when the stirring mode is selected. On the other hand, even in air conditioning operation modes that allow air direction setting when the stirring mode is not selected, air direction adjustment cannot be performed while the stirring mode is selected because conflicting controls may be included. Even when such an operation is performed, the control unit 111 may notify the operation terminal 300 and the housing 21 of an error.

[0157] Furthermore, if an instruction is given from the operation terminal 300 to start an air conditioning operation mode such as rapid mode, going out mode, or power-saving cooling mode while the stirring mode is selected, or if an instruction is given to start a control mode such as no-wind mode or wind direction control mode, the control unit 111 cancels the stirring mode and transitions to the instructed air conditioning operation mode or control mode. In this way, the air conditioning apparatus 10 of the embodiment has an exclusion function that cancels the stirring mode when starting an air conditioning operation mode or control mode that is incompatible with the stirring mode.

[0158] When an instruction to end the agitation mode is given from the operation terminal 300, the control unit 111 ends the agitation mode, and returns the control of the up-down louvers 115a, 115b and the left-right louvers 116a, 116b to the state before the agitation mode was started.

[0159] When the air conditioning apparatus 10 is not operating, the agitation mode cannot be started by the operation terminal 300 or the like. However, under certain conditions, the control unit 111 may automatically start the agitation mode in, for example, an air conditioning apparatus 10 that is in a stopped state.

[0160] That is, for example, when the air purification operation is started by an instruction from the operation terminal 300 or by the air purification monitoring function, the agitation mode may be used in combination for several minutes from the start of the air purification operation. Alternatively, once the agitation mode is started, the agitation mode may be continued until a release signal is received from the operation terminal 300 by a user operation, for example.

[0161] In addition, when the fan operation or the cooling operation is started by the high temperature watch function, the stirring mode may be used in combination for several minutes from the start of the fan operation or the cooling operation. Alternatively, after the stirring mode is started once, the stirring mode may be continued until a release signal is received from the operation terminal 300 by, for example, a user's operation. In addition, at this time, the stirring mode may be used in combination only at the start of the fan operation or only at the start of the cooling operation, or at the start of both the fan operation and the cooling operation. In addition, when the stirring mode is used in combination, the up-down air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left-right air deflectors 116a, 116b may be continuously swung, or at least one of the up-down air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left-right air deflectors 116a, 116b may be intermittently swung.

[0162] Also, for example, when an air conditioning operation that can be used in combination with the agitation mode is started by an instruction from the operation terminal 300 or by a timer setting, the agitation mode may be used in combination for several minutes after the start of the air conditioning operation. Alternatively, once the agitation mode is started, the agitation mode may be continued until a release signal is received from the operation terminal 300 by a user operation, for example.

[0163] In addition, when the wind direction control mode is selected, if the control unit 111 determines based on the detection results of the radar 117C that there is no living body CR such as a person present in the room, the wind direction control mode may be switched to the stirring mode.

[0164] When the stirring mode is started by a user operation or an automatic control function, if at least one of the up / down air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left / right air deflectors 116a, 116b is not at the stirring mode start position, the control shown in Fig. 10 is performed. In the following example, the stirring mode start position is a state in which one of the up / down air deflectors 115a, 115b is at the upper limit position and the other is at the lower limit position, and one of the left / right air deflectors 116a, 116b is at the right limit position and the other is at the left limit position.

[0165] FIG. 10 is a waveform diagram when control is performed to adjust the up-down airflow direction vanes 115a, 115b and the left-right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b to the start positions of the agitation mode in the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the embodiment.

[0166] The waveform diagram in the upper part of Fig. 10 shows an example of the movement of the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b, and the waveform diagram in the lower part shows an example of the movement of the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b. In the waveform diagrams in Fig. 10, the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b.

[0167] As shown in the upper part of Fig. 10, when the start of the stirring mode is instructed, both the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b are not at the start position of the stirring mode. In this case, the control unit 111 moves the one of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b that is closer to the upper limit position to the upper limit position, and moves the one closer to the lower limit position to the lower limit position. In addition, the one of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b that reaches the target position first is temporarily stopped at that position until the other one reaches the target position.

[0168] In the example of Fig. 10, the control unit 111 causes one of the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b to reach the upper limit before the other reaches the lower limit. The control unit 111 temporarily stops the louver that has reached the upper limit at that position, and when the other louver reaches the lower limit, starts swinging the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b at a predetermined period T1. As a result, in the example of Fig. 10, the normal swinging operation in the agitation mode is started by the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b after the time dT1 has elapsed since the instruction to start the agitation mode.

[0169] As shown in the lower part of Fig. 10, it is assumed that neither of the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b was at the start position of the stirring mode when the start of the stirring mode was instructed. In this case, the control unit 111 moves the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b, whichever is closer to the right limit position, to the right limit position, and moves the one closer to the left limit position to the left limit position. In addition, the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b, whichever reaches the target position first, is temporarily stopped at that position until the other one reaches the target position.

[0170] In the example of Fig. 10, the control unit 111 causes one of the left and right louvers 116a, 116b to reach the left limit before the other reaches the right limit. The control unit 111 pauses the one that has reached the left limit at that position, and when the other one reaches the right limit, the control unit 111 starts swinging the left and right louvers 116a, 116b at a predetermined period T2. As a result, in the example of Fig. 10, the left and right louvers 116a, 116b start normal swinging operation in the stirring mode after a time dT2 has elapsed since the instruction to start the stirring mode.

[0171] In addition, the length relationship between the times dT1 and dT2 until the regular agitation mode is started for the vertical louvers 115a and 115b and the horizontal louvers 116a and 116b may vary depending on the amount of deviation of the vertical louvers 115a and the horizontal louvers 116a from the starting position of the agitation mode. That is, the time dT1 may be shorter, longer, or equal to the time dT2.

[0172] 10, the case where the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b are not all at the start position of the stirring mode has been described, but the number of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b at positions shifted from the start position is not limited to this. Even when any one of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b is shifted from the start position, or when either one of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and either one of the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b is shifted from the start position, the control as described in the above-mentioned FIG. 10 is performed.

[0173] In addition, in FIG. 10, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b that are closer to the upper limit are moved to the upper limit, and the left and right louvers 116a and 116b that are closer to the right limit are moved to the right limit. However, regardless of the positions of the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b when the stirring mode is started, one may be always moved to the upper limit and the other to the lower limit. Similarly, regardless of the positions of the left and right louvers 116a and 116b when the stirring mode is started, one may be always moved to the right limit and the other to the left limit.

[0174] In the above embodiment, the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b are swung from the upper limit to the lower limit, or from the right limit to the left limit, of the rotation angle in the stirring mode. However, the range of the swing of the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b in the stirring mode is not limited to this. The vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b may swing between a predetermined position less than the upper limit or less than the right limit of the rotation angle to a predetermined position less than the lower limit or less than the left limit of the rotation angle.

[0175] In the above embodiment, the period T2 of the swing of the left and right airfoils 116a, 116b is longer than the period T1 of the swing of the up and down airfoils 115a, 115b. However, as long as the periods of the up and down airfoils 115a, 115b and the left and right airfoils 116a, 116b do not match, either period may be longer.

[0176] In the above embodiment, the vertical air deflector 115c is stopped at a predetermined position in the stirring mode. However, when the number of vertical air deflectors below the air outlet 33 is the same as the number of vertical air deflectors 115a and 115b, the vertically aligned vertical air deflectors may swing together at the same cycle and in the same phase. This allows the vertical air deflectors to swing without interfering with each other.

[0177] In the above embodiment, the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b are swung in opposite phases in the stirring mode. However, if the phases of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b are not the same, the oscillations of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a and 115b do not have to be in opposite phases. If three or more upper and lower air deflectors are provided above the air outlet 33, it is sufficient that adjacent upper and lower air deflectors are not in the same phase.

[0178] Similarly, in the above-described embodiment, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b are configured to swing in opposite phases. However, if the phases of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b are not the same, the swinging of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b does not have to be in opposite phases. Note that, if three or more left and right airflow direction vanes are provided aligned in the width direction of the air outlet 33, it is sufficient that adjacent left and right airflow vanes are not in the same phase.

[0179] (Variation 1) Next, an air conditioner according to a first modified embodiment of the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 11. The air conditioner according to the first modified embodiment differs from the above-described embodiment in the way in which the up-down and left-right louvers are swung in the stirring mode. In the following description, the reference numerals of the various parts of the air conditioner 10 according to the above-described embodiment will be used as they are.

[0180] FIG. 11 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction vanes and the left / right airflow direction vanes in the agitation mode of the air conditioner according to the first modified example of the embodiment.

[0181] The upper waveform diagram in Fig. 11 shows the movement of the vertical airfoils 115a, 115b, and the lower waveform diagram shows the movement of the horizontal airfoils 116a, 116b. In the waveform diagrams in Fig. 11, the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical airfoils 115a, 115b and the horizontal airfoils 116a, 116b.

[0182] As shown in the upper part of FIG. 11, in the stirring mode of the first modification, the control unit 111 stops the upper and lower limit positions of the vanes 115a and 115b at the upper and lower limit positions for a certain period of time, for example, about 1 to 5 seconds. As a result, the waveforms showing the movement of the vanes 115a and 115b do not change gradually from the upper limit to the lower limit and vice versa, but become linear. That is, these waveforms include, for example, a straight line from the upper limit to the lower limit, a straight line extending at the lower limit position for a certain period of time, a straight line from the lower limit to the upper limit, and a straight line extending at the upper limit position for a certain period of time.

[0183] In the first modification, the control unit 111 also swings the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b in mutually different phases and at a predetermined cycle T1.

[0184] As shown in the lower part of FIG. 11, in the stirring mode of the first modification, the control unit 111 stops the left and right louvers 116a and 116b at the right and left limit positions for a certain period of time, for example, about 1 to 5 seconds, at the right and left limit positions. As a result, the waveforms showing the movement of the left and right louvers 116a and 116b do not change gradually from the right limit to the left limit and from the left limit to the right limit, but become linear waveforms. In other words, these waveforms are configured to include, for example, a straight line from the right limit to the left limit, a straight line extending at the left limit position for a certain period of time, a straight line from the left limit to the right limit, and a straight line extending at the right limit position for a certain period of time.

[0185] In the first modification, the control unit 111 also swings the left and right louvers 116a and 116b in mutually different phases and at a cycle T2 different from the cycle T1 of the top and bottom louvers 115a and 115b.

[0186] (Variation 2) Next, an air conditioning apparatus according to a second modified embodiment of the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 12. The air conditioning apparatus according to the second modified embodiment differs from the above-described embodiment in that, in the stirring mode, at least one of the periods of the multiple upper and lower air deflectors and the multiple left and right air deflectors differ. In the following description, the reference numerals of the various parts of the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the above-described embodiment will be used as they are.

[0187] FIG. 12 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the top / bottom airflow direction vanes and the left / right airflow direction vanes in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the second modified example of the embodiment.

[0188] The upper waveform diagram in Fig. 12 shows the movement of the vertical airfoils 115a, 115b, and the lower waveform diagram shows the movement of the horizontal airfoils 116a, 116b. In the waveform diagrams in Fig. 12, the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical airfoils 115a, 115b and the horizontal airfoils 116a, 116b.

[0189] As shown in the upper part of Fig. 12, even in the stirring mode of the modified example 2, the waveform of the oscillation of the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b is the same as, for example, the upper part of Fig. 7 of the above-mentioned embodiment. In other words, both the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b oscillate with, for example, the period T1 of the above-mentioned embodiment.

[0190] As shown in the lower part of FIG. 12, in the stirring mode of Modification 2, when swinging the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b, the control unit 111 makes the swing period T21 of the left and right air deflectors 116a different from the swing period T22 of the left and right air deflectors 116b.

[0191] That is, in the stirring mode of the second modified example, the period T1 of the up-down louvers 115a, 115b, the period T21 of the left-right louvers 116a, and the period T22 of the left-right louvers 116b are all different.

[0192] In this case, in the example of Fig. 12, the period T21 of the left and right airfoil 116a is longer than the period T1 of the up and down airfoils 115a and 115b by a time Δt21. Also, the period T22 of the left and right airfoil 116b is longer than the period T21 of the left and right airfoil 116a by a time Δt22. In this case, as an example, the period T1 can be set to 18 seconds or more and 22 seconds or less, the period T21 can be set to 20 seconds or more and 24 seconds or less, and the period T22 can be set to 22 seconds or more and 26 seconds or less. However, as long as the periods T1, T21, and T22 are different from each other, the magnitude relationship between these periods T1, T21, and T22 is not limited to the example of Fig. 12.

[0193] 12, the periods of the left and right airfoils 116a and 116b are different from each other, but instead, the periods of the up and down airfoils 115a and 115b may be different from each other. In this case, the periods of the up and down airfoils 115a, the up and down airfoils 115b, and the left and right airfoils 116a and 116b are different from each other.

[0194] Alternatively, the periods of the left and right airfoils 116a, 116b may be different from each other, and the periods of the up and down airfoils 115a, 115b may be different from each other. In this case, the periods of the up and down airfoils 115a, the up and down airfoils 115b, the left and right airfoils 116a, and the left and right airfoils 116b are all different from each other.

[0195] (Variation 3) Next, an air conditioning apparatus according to a third modified example of the embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 13. The air conditioning apparatus according to the third modified example differs from the above-described embodiment in the number of at least one of the top and bottom air deflectors and the left and right air deflectors. In the following description, the same reference numerals will be used to denote the parts equivalent to the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the above-described embodiment.

[0196] Fig. 13 is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the up-down airflow direction vanes and the left-right airflow direction vanes in the stirring mode of the air conditioner according to the third modified example of the embodiment. Note that in the example of Fig. 13, the up-down airflow direction vanes above the air outlet 33 are not divided and extend in the width direction of the air outlet 33, similar to the up-down airflow direction vanes 115c below the air outlet 33.

[0197] The upper waveform diagram in Fig. 13 shows the movement of the vertical air deflectors above the air outlet 33, and the lower waveform diagram shows the movement of the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b. In the waveform diagrams in Fig. 13, the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical air deflectors and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b.

[0198] As shown in the upper part of FIG. 13, when only one vertical louver is provided above the air outlet 33, the vertical louver can be swung at a predetermined period T1 in the stirring mode.

[0199] As shown in the lower part of Fig. 13, the waveform of the oscillation of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b is similar to that of the lower part of Fig. 7 in the above-mentioned embodiment. In other words, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b oscillate at a predetermined period T2 different from the period T1 of the up and down airflow direction vanes above the air outlet 33.

[0200] In the example of Figure 13, the upper and lower air deflectors above the air outlet 33 are not divided. Alternatively, even if the left and right air deflectors are not divided, the left and right air deflectors can be oscillated at a period T2 that is different from the period T1 of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b.

[0201] In addition, if the up / down air deflectors and the left / right air deflectors above the air outlet 33 are not divided into left and right, these up / down air deflectors and left / right air deflectors can be swung at different periods T1, T2, etc.

[0202] (Variation 4) Next, an air conditioning apparatus according to a fourth modified embodiment of the embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 14 and 15. The air conditioning apparatus according to the fourth modified embodiment differs from the above-described embodiment in that, in the stirring mode, a bias is provided in at least one of the vertical swing width of the up / down louvers and the horizontal swing width of the horizontal louvers. Note that, in the following description, the reference numerals of the various parts of the air conditioning apparatus 10 according to the above-described embodiment will be quoted as they are.

[0203] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example in which the movements of the left and right louvers 116a, 116b are biased in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the fourth modified example of the embodiment.

[0204] More specifically, Figure 14(a) is a waveform diagram showing an example of the movement of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b in variant example 4, and Figure 14(c) is an overhead view of the room RM showing the position at which the indoor unit 11 is installed when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b move as shown in Figure 14(a).

[0205] Figure 14(b) is a waveform diagram showing another example of the movement of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b in variant example 4, and Figure 14(d) is an overhead view of the room RM showing the position at which the indoor unit 11 is installed when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b move as shown in Figure 14(b).

[0206] 14(a) and (b), the waveform diagrams in the upper part show the movements of the vertical air deflectors 115a and 115b, and the waveform diagrams in the lower part show the movements of the horizontal air deflectors 116a and 116b. In the waveform diagrams in FIG. 14(a) and (b), the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical air deflectors 115a and 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a and 116b.

[0207] As shown in Fig. 14(c), the waveform diagram in Fig. 14(a) is an example in which the indoor unit 11 is installed in one corner of the room RM in the +X direction, with the indoor unit 11 itself as the reference. In this case, the wall of the room RM is located on the right side as viewed from the indoor unit 11, that is, near the +X direction side.

[0208] As shown in the upper part of Fig. 14(a), in the stirring mode of the fourth modification, the waveform of the oscillation of the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b is similar to that of the upper part of Fig. 7 of the above-mentioned embodiment. That is, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b oscillate at positions ranging from the upper limit value to the lower limit value of the rotation angle.

[0209] As shown in the lower part of FIG. 14(a), in the stirring mode of the fourth modification, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a and 116b swing between a predetermined position less than the right limit value of the rotation angle and a position to the left limit value. k ,116 (k+1) 116 2k The swing distance in the +X direction from the position where the rotation angle is 0°, where the tip portion faces the +Y direction, is shorter than the swing distance in the -X direction.

[0210] In this way, when the indoor unit 11 is installed on the right side of the room RM (closer to the +X direction), the left and right airflow direction plates 116a, 116b can be caused to swing leftward. This allows the air to be blown with more emphasis on the left side where the indoor space is wider, so that the air in the room RM can be agitated more efficiently.

[0211] As shown in Fig. 14(d), the waveform diagram in Fig. 14(b) is an example in which the indoor unit 11 is installed in one corner of the room RM in the -X direction, with the indoor unit 11 itself as the reference. In this case, the wall of the room RM is located on the left side as viewed from the indoor unit 11, that is, near the -X direction side.

[0212] As shown in the upper part of Fig. 14(b), in the stirring mode of another example of the modified example 4, the waveform of the oscillation of the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b is similar to that of the upper part of Fig. 7 of the above-mentioned embodiment. In other words, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b oscillate at positions from the upper limit value to the lower limit value of the rotation angle.

[0213] As shown in the lower part of FIG. 14(b), in the stirring mode in another example of the fourth modification, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b swing between the right limit value of the rotation angle and a predetermined position less than the left limit value. k ,116 (k+1) 116 2k The swing distance in the -X direction from the position where the rotation angle is 0°, where the tip portion faces the +Y direction, is shorter than the swing distance in the +X direction.

[0214] In this way, when the indoor unit 11 is installed toward the left side of the room RM (toward the -X direction), the movement of the left and right airflow direction plates 116a, 116b can be made to swing toward the right side. This allows the air to be sent with more emphasis on the right side where the indoor space is wider, so the air in the room RM can be mixed more efficiently.

[0215] FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example in which the movements of the upper and lower louvers 115a, 115b are biased in the agitation mode of an air conditioner according to the fourth modified example of the embodiment.

[0216] More specifically, Figure 15(a) is a waveform diagram showing yet another example of the movement of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b in variant example 4, and Figure 15(c) is a side view of the room RM showing the bias in the air blowing out from the indoor unit 11 when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b move as shown in Figure 15(a).

[0217] Figure 15(b) is a waveform diagram showing yet another example of the movement of the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b in variant example 4, and Figure 15(d) is a side view of the room RM showing the bias in the air blowing out from the indoor unit 11 when the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b and the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b move as shown in Figure 15(b).

[0218] 15(a)(b), the waveform diagrams in the upper part show the movements of the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b, and the waveform diagrams in the lower part show the movements of the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b. In the waveform diagrams in FIG. 15(a)(b), the horizontal axis is time, and the vertical axis is the angle of the vertical air deflectors 115a, 115b and the horizontal air deflectors 116a, 116b.

[0219] 15(a), in another stirring mode of the fourth modification, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b swing from a predetermined position below the upper limit of the rotation angle to a position below the lower limit. In other words, from the position where the rotation angle is 0°, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b do not fully open, and the swing distance in the +Z direction is shorter than the swing distance in the -Z direction.

[0220] As shown in the lower part of Fig. 15(a), in yet another stirring mode of the modified example 4, the waveform of the swinging of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b is similar to that of the lower part of Fig. 7 in the above-mentioned embodiment. That is, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b swing between the right limit value and the left limit value of the rotation angle.

[0221] As shown in Fig. 15(c), when the vertical louvers 115a and 115b swing as shown in the waveform diagram of Fig. 15(a), the movement of the vertical louvers 115a and 115b is biased upward (in the +Z direction). This allows the wind to be sent with more emphasis on the upper space in the room RM.

[0222] 15(b), in another stirring mode of the fourth modification, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b swing between the upper limit and lower limit of the rotation angle. In other words, the upper and lower louvers 115a and 115b do not reach the maximum upward position from the rotation angle of 0°, and the swing distance in the -Z direction is shorter than the swing distance in the +Z direction.

[0223] As shown in the lower part of Fig. 15(b), in the further stirring mode of the modified example 4, the waveform of the oscillation of the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b is similar to that in the lower part of Fig. 7 of the above-mentioned embodiment. In other words, the left and right airflow direction vanes 116a, 116b oscillate between the right limit value and the left limit value of the rotation angle.

[0224] As shown in Fig. 15(d), when the vertical louvers 115a and 115b swing as shown in the waveform diagram of Fig. 15(b), the movement of the vertical louvers 115a and 115b is biased downward (-Z direction). This allows the wind to be sent with more emphasis on the lower space of the room RM.

[0225] In this way, whether the upper and lower airflow direction plates 115a, 115b are swung as shown in Fig. 15(a) or as shown in Fig. 15(b) can be switched depending on, for example, whether the air conditioner of Modification 4 is in cooling operation or heating operation. Also, switching between Fig. 15(a) and Fig. 15(b) may be performed depending on whether wind is to be actively blown onto or removed from the lower space in which a living body CR such as a human being is present in the room.

[0226] In addition, the user may be able to select either of the above-mentioned Fig. 14(a)(b) or either of Fig. 15(a)(b) according to preference. The user may be able to select either of Fig. 14(a)(b) and either of Fig. 15(a)(b) in combination.

[0227] (Overview) As described above, the air conditioning device 10 of the embodiment comprises a housing 21 having an air outlet 33 for blowing air into the room, an up-down air deflector 115 provided at the air outlet 33 for adjusting the direction of the air blown into the room in the up-down direction, a left-right air deflector 116 provided at the air outlet 33 for adjusting the direction of the air blown into the room in the left-right direction, and a control unit 111 for controlling the up-down air deflector 115 and the left-right air deflector 116, and the control unit 111 blows air out of the air outlet 33 while oscillating the up-down air deflector 115 up and down with a period T1 (an example of a first period) and oscillating the left-right air deflector 116 left and right with a period T2 (an example of a second period) different from the period T1.

[0228] With this configuration, instead of constantly switching between the same wind directions, such as swinging from diagonally upward to the left to diagonally downward to the right, the wind direction can be changed in a complex manner over time by simply controlling the shifting of the swinging periods of the up-down louver 115 and the left-right louver 116. Therefore, the air in the room can be effectively agitated by the above-mentioned simple control.

[0229] In addition, as described above, by using the stirring mode in combination with the air conditioning operation mode, the efficiency of the air conditioning operation can be improved. This allows for a cool feeling to be obtained without using the cooling operation, for example, by using the stirring mode in combination with the air purification operation in the off-season such as early spring.

[0230] Furthermore, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, the upper and lower air deflectors 115 include a plurality of upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b (an example of a first upper and lower air deflector) divided so as to be aligned in the width direction of the air outlet 33, and in the stirring mode, the control unit 111 oscillates the upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b adjacent to each other in the width direction of the air outlet 33 out of phase with respect to each other.

[0231] With this configuration, the air in the room can be agitated more effectively.

[0232] Furthermore, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, the multiple upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b are arranged toward the upper side in the height direction of the air outlet 33, and the above-mentioned upper and lower air deflectors 115 further include an upper and lower air deflector 115c (an example of a second upper and lower air deflector) arranged toward the lower side in the height direction of the air outlet 33, and in the stirring mode, the control unit 111 oscillates the multiple upper and lower air deflectors 115a, 115b while fixing the upper and lower air deflector 115c in a predetermined position.

[0233] According to this configuration, even in a configuration with multiple vertical louvers 115a to 115c in the vertical direction, the upper vertical louvers 115a and 115b can be swung while preventing the vertical louvers 115a, 115b and the vertical louvers 115c arranged in the vertical direction from interfering with each other. Also, by fixing the vertical louver 115c to a predetermined position, it becomes easy to control the vertical louvers 115a to 115c in the stirring mode.

[0234] Furthermore, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, the left and right air deflectors 116 include multiple left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b divided so as to be aligned in the width direction of the air outlet 33, and in the stirring mode, the control unit 111 oscillates the left and right air deflectors 116a, 116b adjacent to each other in the width direction of the air outlet 33 out of phase with each other.

[0235] With this configuration, the air in the room can be agitated more effectively.

[0236] Furthermore, the air conditioning device 10 includes, for example, a plurality of operation modes in which the manner in which air is blown into the room differs, and the stirring mode can be used in combination with some of the plurality of operation modes.

[0237] According to such a configuration, for example, the agitation mode can be used in combination with an air conditioning operation mode for which there is a high demand for the agitation mode. This meets the needs of users and provides the conditioned air that the user desires. In addition, it is possible to suppress the use of the agitation mode in combination with an air conditioning operation mode that includes a control that contradicts the agitation mode.

[0238] Furthermore, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, when the control unit 111 receives a transition signal from the operation terminal 300 instructing a transition to the agitation mode when one of the multiple operating modes that can be used in conjunction with the agitation mode is selected, the control unit 111 transitions to the agitation mode, and when the control unit 111 receives the transition signal from the operation terminal 300 when one of the multiple operating modes other than the above-mentioned certain operating mode is selected, the control unit 111 notifies at least one of the housing 21 and the operation terminal 300 of an error.

[0239] According to this configuration, it is possible to inform a user who is about to select the stirring mode that an air conditioning operation mode that is not intended to be used in combination with the stirring mode, or an air conditioning operation mode that is prohibited from being used in combination with the stirring mode, is selected. This makes it possible to make the user aware that the stirring mode cannot be used in the operating status of the air conditioning device 10 at that time, and also makes it possible to suppress erroneous operations by the user.

[0240] Furthermore, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, when the control unit 111 receives a cancellation signal from the operation terminal 300 instructing the cancellation of the stirring mode, it cancels the stirring mode and controls the up / down wind direction vanes 115 and the left / right wind direction vanes 116 to return to the wind direction before the transition to the stirring mode.

[0241] According to such a configuration, the stirring mode can be ended with a simple operation without forcing the user to perform complicated operations such as returning the up-down louvers 115 and the left-right louvers 116 to their original settings.

[0242] In addition, the air conditioning device 10 further includes a radar 117C (an example of a biological sensor) that detects the position of a living organism CR present in the room, and when the control unit 111 receives a transition signal from the operation terminal 300 instructing a transition to a wind direction control mode in which the wind direction is controlled based on the detection results of the radar 117C, the control unit 111 transitions to the wind direction control mode, and if the agitation mode is selected when the transition signal is received, the agitation mode is cancelled and the control unit 111 transitions to the wind direction control mode.

[0243] With this configuration, when transitioning from the agitation mode to the wind direction control mode, which cannot be used in conjunction with the agitation mode, the user can transition from the agitation mode to the wind direction control mode with a simple operation, without forcing the user to perform complicated operations such as temporarily canceling the agitation mode.

[0244] In addition, in the air conditioning device 10, for example, when the control unit 111 determines that no living organism CR is present in the room based on the detection results of the radar 117C while the wind direction control mode is selected, the control unit 111 transitions from the wind direction control mode to the stirring mode.

[0245] According to such a configuration, it is possible to switch to the stirring mode instead of the air direction control mode, which is not necessary in a room where no living organisms CR are present, and to stir the air in the room while no humans or other people are present.

[0246] In addition, the air conditioning device 10 further includes, for example, a particle detection sensor 117D that detects the cleanliness of the air in the room, and the control unit 111 uses an air purification monitoring function that starts an air purification operation to purify the air based on the detection results of the particle detection sensor 117D, and when the air purification operation is started, the control unit 111 also uses the stirring mode for at least a predetermined time from the start of the air purification operation.

[0247] With this configuration, even if the air purification operation is started automatically, the stirring mode can be started without the need for user operation. Also, by using the stirring mode in combination with the air purification operation, the air can be purified more quickly and efficiently.

[0248] In addition, the air conditioning device 10 further includes, for example, room temperature sensors 117A, 117B that detect the temperature inside the room, and the control unit 111 uses a high temperature monitoring function that starts fan operation or cooling operation based on the detection results of the room temperature sensors 117A, 117B, and when fan operation or cooling operation is started, the control unit 111 also uses the stirring mode for at least a predetermined time from the start of the fan operation or cooling operation.

[0249] According to this configuration, the stirring mode can be started without the need for user operation even when the cooling operation etc. is started automatically. In addition, by using the stirring mode in combination with the cooling operation etc., the temperature can be lowered by cooling the air in the entire room more quickly and efficiently.

[0250] In the above-described embodiment and modified examples 1 to 4, it is assumed that the operation to start the stirring mode cannot be performed when the air conditioning apparatus 10 is stopped. However, the air conditioning apparatus 10 may be configured to accept an operation to start the stirring mode even when the air conditioning apparatus 10 is stopped. In this case, when an operation to start the stirring mode is performed, the air conditioning apparatus 10 that was stopped starts an air blowing operation or an air cleaning operation, and the air conditioning apparatus 10 can be configured to perform control in the stirring mode in parallel with this. In this case, the blowing speed (wind speed) of the conditioned air in the air blowing operation or air cleaning operation may be set to, for example, a predetermined value or more, and more preferably, the blowing speed (wind speed) of the conditioned air may be set to a maximum.

[0251] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment and modified examples 1 to 4, the air conditioning apparatus 10 is connected to a network NW. However, the air conditioning apparatus 10 does not have to be connected to a network NW. In this case, the air conditioning apparatus 10 can receive various operations from an operation terminal 300 such as a mobile terminal or a remote controller by directly communicating with the operation terminal 300.

[0252] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the above embodiment is merely an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The above embodiment can be implemented in various forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. The above embodiment is included in the scope and gist of the invention, and is included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0253] 1... air conditioning system, 10... air conditioning device, 11... indoor unit, 12... outdoor unit, 21... housing, 33... air outlet, 111... control unit, 115a, 115b, 115c... upper and lower air deflectors, 1161, 1162... 116 k ,116 (k+1) 116 2k ...wind deflector, 116a, 116b...left and right wind deflectors, 117A, 117B...room temperature sensor, 117C...radar, 117D...particle detection sensor, 118...air purification unit, 119...communication section, 200...server, 300...operation terminal.

Claims

1. A housing provided with an air outlet for blowing air into a room; An upper and lower airflow direction plate provided at the air outlet for adjusting the wind direction of the air blown into the room in an up and down direction; A left / right wind direction plate provided at the air outlet for adjusting the wind direction of the air blown into the room in a left / right direction; A control unit that controls the upper and lower wind direction vanes and the left and right wind direction vanes, The control unit is a stirring mode is executed in which the air is blown out from the air outlet, the vertical air deflector is swung up and down in a first period, and the horizontal air deflector is swung left and right in a second period different from the first period. Air conditioning units.

2. The upper and lower wind direction plates are A plurality of first upper and lower airflow direction plates are divided so as to be aligned in a width direction of the air outlet, The control unit is In the stirring mode, Among the plurality of first vertical airflow direction vanes, adjacent first vertical airflow direction vanes in a width direction of the air outlet are swung out of phase with each other. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1.

3. The plurality of first vertical airflow direction vanes include The air outlet is provided at an upper position in the height direction, The upper and lower wind direction plates are Further including a second upper and lower airflow direction plate provided on a lower side in the height direction of the air outlet, The control unit is In the stirring mode, The first vertical airflow direction vanes are swung while the second vertical airflow direction vanes are fixed in a predetermined position. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 2.

4. The left and right wind direction vanes are The blower includes a plurality of left and right wind direction plates divided so as to be aligned in the width direction of the blower outlet, The control unit is In the stirring mode, Among the plurality of left and right airflow direction vanes, the left and right airflow direction vanes adjacent to each other in the width direction of the air outlet are swung out of phase with each other. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1.

5. A plurality of operation modes in which the manner in which the air is blown into the room is different are included, The stirring mode is It can be used in combination with some of the multiple operation modes. An air-conditioning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

6. The control unit is When a transition signal instructing a transition to the agitation mode is received from an operation terminal in a state in which the part of the operation modes that can be used in combination with the agitation mode is selected from the plurality of operation modes, the transition to the agitation mode is performed; when the transition signal is received from the operation terminal in a state in which an operation mode other than the part of the operation modes is selected from among the plurality of operation modes, an error is notified to at least one of the housing and the operation terminal. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 5.

7. The control unit is When a release signal instructing to release the agitation mode is received from the operation terminal, the agitation mode is released and the up-down air deflector and the left-right air deflector are controlled to return to the air direction before the transition to the agitation mode. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 6.

8. Further comprising a sensor for detecting the position of a living body present in the room, The control unit is when receiving, from an operation terminal, a transition signal instructing a transition to a wind direction control mode in which the wind direction is controlled based on the detection result of the sensor, the mode transitions to the wind direction control mode; If the agitation mode is selected when the transition signal is received, the agitation mode is released and the mode is transitioned to the airflow direction control mode. An air-conditioning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

9. The control unit is When the airflow direction control mode is selected and it is determined based on the detection result of the sensor that no living body is present in the room, the airflow direction control mode is switched to the stirring mode. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 8.

10. Further comprising a sensor for detecting the cleanliness of the air in the room, The control unit is When the air purification operation is started by an air purification watch function that starts an air purification operation for purifying the air based on the detection result of the sensor, the stirring mode is used in combination for at least a predetermined time from the start of the air purification operation. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1.

11. Further comprising a sensor for detecting a temperature inside the room, The control unit is When the fan operation or the cooling operation is started by a high temperature monitoring function that starts the fan operation or the cooling operation based on the detection result of the sensor, the stirring mode is used in combination for at least a predetermined time from the start of the fan operation or the cooling operation. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1.

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