Window air conditioner

Abstract

To provide a window air conditioner which is excellent in dew condensation resistance.SOLUTION: A window air conditioner comprises a main body having a refrigeration cycle, an indoor suction port 12 arranged at a front face side of the main body, an indoor blowout port 13, and an indoor fan 31 for blowing out air from the indoor blowout port 13. The window air conditioner also comprises a front panel 80 vertically arranged in a position for covering at least a face located at a first direction side out of all faces of the indoor suction port 12 at a front view when setting the indoor blowout port 13 side which adjoins from the indoor suction port 12 as a first direction, and an air duct 81 between the front panel 80 and the indoor suction port 12. The panel 80 comprises a front wall 82, a guide wall 83 which is erected with an end part of the front wall 82 in the first direction as a base point, and with an exterior part 17 for defining the indoor suction port 12 and the indoor blowout port 13 of the main body as an arrival point, and intrusion ports 84 located in a direction opposite to the first direction, and in a vertical direction of the front wall 82. The guide wall 83 comprises an opening part 85 at the arrival point side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

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[0001] The present invention relates to a window air conditioner for household use. More specifically, it relates to an air conditioner having an indoor suction port and an indoor blowout port that communicate with each other through an air duct housing a heat exchanger and an indoor fan, and to a technique for suppressing dew condensation on a front panel (decorative panel) provided in front of the indoor suction port.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, this type of window air conditioner has an indoor suction port for sucking indoor air and an indoor blowout port for blowing out temperature-controlled air into the room, both provided on the front of the appliance. A wind direction changing part for changing the direction of the blown air is provided at the indoor blowout port. As the wind direction changing part, a wind direction changing part that changes the flow of the air blown out from the indoor blowout port in the left-right direction is used to send out the air blown out from the indoor blowout port toward a desired area in the room. In addition, a front panel (decorative panel) is provided outside the indoor suction port to differentiate the product from those of other companies and make the appearance look better. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1.)

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the window air conditioner shown in Patent Document 1, as shown in Figure 9, when the airflow direction change unit 191 of the indoor air outlet 113 is directed toward the indoor air intake on the left side during cooling operation, some of the temperature-controlled cold air enters the air passage 181 between the front panel 180, which is located in front of the indoor air intake 112, and the indoor air intake 112, causing a short circuit. At the same time, the rear side (main body side) of the front panel 180 is cooled, and as a result, moisture in the air condenses on the front side (front side) of the front panel 180, causing condensation to adhere to it.

[0005] Even when a guide wall 183 is provided, as shown in Figure 10, extending from the end 182c of the front panel 180 on the side of the indoor air outlet 113 toward the main body, to block the cold air from the indoor air outlet 113, the cold air from the indoor air outlet 113 still passes over the outer surface 183a of the guide wall 183. As a result, the outer surface 183a of the guide wall 183 is cooled, and the air flowing in from the inlet 184 flows to the air passage side surface 183b of the guide wall 183. Moisture in the air condenses on the air passage side surface 183b, causing condensation to adhere to it, which poses a problem as it may drip and stain the interior.

[0006] This invention was made in view of the above background, and aims to provide a window air conditioner that has excellent condensation resistance even when the airflow direction changing part of the indoor air outlet is directed towards the indoor intake. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention has been made to achieve the above objective, and in claim 1, a main body comprising a refrigeration cycle through which a compressor, condenser, pressure reducing device, and evaporator are connected by refrigerant piping and a refrigerant flows; an indoor intake port located on the front side of the main body; an indoor outlet located perpendicularly on the front side of the main body adjacent to the indoor intake port; and an indoor fan that draws air in from the indoor intake port and blows it out from the indoor outlet port via the evaporator, wherein when the side adjacent to the indoor outlet port from the indoor intake port is considered the first direction, at least of the entire surface of the indoor intake port in a front view The device further comprises a front panel positioned perpendicularly to cover the surface on the first direction side, and an air passage between the front panel and the indoor intake port, wherein the front panel comprises a front wall that forms a surface covering the indoor intake port when viewed from the front, a guide wall erected with the first direction end of the front wall as the starting point and the exterior portion that separates the indoor intake port and the indoor outlet port of the main body as the arrival point, and an air inlet opening between the front wall's opposite and vertical ends and the main body, and the guide wall is characterized by having an opening on the arrival point side.

[0008] Claim 2 is characterized in that the exterior portion has a protrusion that projects outward from the main body toward the air passage side from the guide wall. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to this invention, even when the airflow direction changing section of the indoor air outlet is directed towards the indoor intake, it is possible to provide a window air conditioner that has excellent resistance to condensation, prevents a decrease in operating performance due to short circuits, and prevents a deterioration in running costs. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] Perspective view of a window air conditioner illustrating the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Front view of a window air conditioner illustrating the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] Right side view of a window air conditioner illustrating the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] AA schematic plan view illustrating the first embodiment of the present invention [Figure 5] A diagram illustrating the refrigeration cycle of the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] A schematic functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] Cross-sectional view illustrating the operating state of the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 8] Cross-sectional view illustrating the operating state of the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] Cross-sectional diagram illustrating the conventional technology [Figure 10] Cross-sectional diagram illustrating proposed modifications to the conventional technology. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] A first embodiment of the window air conditioner according to the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 6.

[0012] 1 is a window air conditioner, 10 is the housing that constitutes the exterior of the window air conditioner 1, and 11 is the front frame that constitutes the front of the housing 10. The housing 10 is fixed to the window frame of the house using a mounting frame 72 and fasteners such as screws, with the front frame 11 side facing the interior and the rear frame 20 side facing the exterior. The front frame 11 includes an indoor air intake port 12 on the front of the main unit for drawing in indoor air, an indoor air outlet 13 positioned perpendicularly to the front of the main unit adjacent to the indoor air intake port 12 for blowing out the air drawn in by the indoor air intake port 12, and an operating unit 14 having multiple switches that allow the user to give instructions such as starting operation and changing the set temperature.

[0013] The control unit 14 is equipped with an operation switch 14a that can start and stop the operation, and an operation selector switch 14b that switches between cooling operation and dehumidification operation. Details of the cooling operation and dehumidification operation will be described later.

[0014] 30 is an indoor ventilation chamber located behind the front frame 11 and formed inside the housing 10. Inside the indoor blower chamber 30, there is an indoor fan 31 as a blower fan that blows the indoor air sucked in from the indoor suction port 12 through the evaporator 33 and out from the indoor blowout port 13, an indoor motor 32 that drives the indoor fan 31 at a predetermined rotational speed, a plurality of fins, a plurality of heat transfer tubes parallel to the left - right direction penetrating the plurality of fins, and a hairpin portion connecting the left and right ends of each heat transfer tube. The evaporator 33 is composed of the heat transfer tubes and the hairpin portion through which a low - temperature refrigerant flows, a heat exchange temperature sensor 34 that abuts on the surface of the heat transfer tube located near the outlet of the refrigerant that constitutes the evaporator 33, a room temperature sensor 35 installed in a fixed frame (not shown) which is a part of the front frame 11 between the indoor suction port 12 and the evaporator 33 and detects the temperature of the indoor air blown by the indoor fan 31, a filter 36 attached to the rear side of the indoor suction port 12 that collects dust contained in the sucked air, and an indoor ventilation path 37 through which the indoor air passes when the indoor fan 31 is driven.

[0015] 40 is an outdoor blower chamber located on the front side of the rear frame 20 and formed inside the housing 10. Inside the outdoor blower chamber 40, there is an outdoor fan 41 that blows the outdoor air sucked in from the outdoor suction port 21 through the condenser 43 and out from the outdoor blowout port 22, an outdoor motor 42 that drives the outdoor fan at a predetermined rotational speed, a condenser 43 through which a high - temperature refrigerant flows in the heat transfer tubes penetrating a plurality of fins, and an outdoor ventilation path 44 through which the outdoor air passes when the outdoor fan 41 is driven.

[0016] There is a machine room (not shown) below the indoor blower chamber 30. Inside the machine room, there are a compressor 51 that compresses the refrigerant to a high - temperature and high - pressure state and can switch the ON / OFF state, and a decompression device 52 that decompresses the refrigerant to a low - temperature and low - pressure state. A refrigeration cycle 54 in which the compressor 51, the condenser 43, the decompression device 52, and the evaporator 33 are sequentially connected by a refrigerant pipe 53 so that the refrigerant can circulate is formed. Further, inside the machine room, a control unit 55 equipped with a switch circuit etc. on a control board is installed. The control unit 55 controls each actuator such as the compressor 51 to be driven with a predetermined operation based on an instruction at the operation unit 14.

[0017] Inside the housing 10, the indoor blower chamber 30 and the outdoor blower chamber 40 are separated by a partition wall 60 so that indoor air and outdoor air do not mix.

[0018] Also, the indoor blower chamber 30 and the machine room are separated by an upper and lower partition plate (not shown), and an indoor motor 32 and a drain pan (not shown) are fixed on the upper and lower partition plate.

[0019] The window air conditioner 1 includes a front panel 80 vertically arranged at a position covering the entire surface of the indoor suction port 12 in a front view, and an air passage 81 provided between the front panel 80 and the indoor suction port 12. When the first direction is the side of the indoor blowout port 13 adjacent to the indoor suction port 12 from the indoor suction port 12, the front panel 80 includes a front wall 82 forming a surface covering the indoor suction port 12 in a front view, a guide wall 83 erected with the end 82c of the front wall 82 in the first direction as a base point and the outer packaging part 17 partitioning the indoor suction port 12 and the indoor blowout port 13 of the main body as an arrival point, and an air intrusion port 84 opened between the end parts of the front wall 82 in the opposite direction and the vertical direction of the first direction and the main body. And the guide wall 83 has an opening 85 on the arrival point side among the base point side and the arrival point side of the guide wall 83.

[0020] The opening 85 may be a through portion formed by cutting out the end portion on the arrival point side of the guide wall 83 to open between the outer packaging part 17, or may be a through hole opened in the guide wall 83.

[0021] Also, the outer packaging part 17 has a convex portion 88 protruding outward from the main body toward the air passage side from the landing point of the guide wall 83 and extending in the vertical direction.

[0022] Next, the operation during the cooling operation in this embodiment will be described.

[0023] When the user operates the operation switch 14a on the control unit 14 and sets the cooling operation using the operation changeover switch 14b, the control unit 55 switches the compressor 51 to the ON state and operates the indoor motor 32 and outdoor motor 42 so that the indoor fan 31 and outdoor fan 41 are driven at a predetermined rotational speed. As a result, the refrigerant circulates within the refrigeration cycle 54 in the direction indicated by arrow B in Figure 4, so that low-temperature refrigerant flows through the evaporator 33 and high-temperature refrigerant flows through the condenser 43. Indoor air drawn in through the indoor intake port 12 is cooled by the evaporator 33 and then blown into the room through the indoor outlet port 13, thereby enabling indoor cooling. Furthermore, the outdoor air drawn in from the outdoor intake port 21 is heated by the condenser 43 and blown outside through the outdoor outlet port 22, thereby cooling the refrigerant flowing inside the condenser 43 and improving the efficiency of the refrigeration cycle 54.

[0024] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained with reference to Figure 7. When the window air conditioner 1 starts cooling operation, the indoor fan 31 is driven to take in indoor air from the indoor intake 12, and the temperature-controlled cool air is blown out from the indoor outlet 13 by the refrigeration cycle 54 described above. The air drawn into the indoor intake port 12 enters through the inlets 84 located on the left side and top and bottom of the front panel 80, and the opening 85 located on the first direction side, and flows through the air passage 81 to the indoor intake port 12. At this time, the cool air from the indoor air outlet 13 brushes past the outer surface 83a of the guide wall 83, cooling the room, and some of it short-circuits and enters the air passage 81 through the opening 85. Of the cool air that enters through the opening 85, some flows directly to the indoor intake 12, while others flow near the inner surface 83b of the guide wall 83 and the inner surface 82b of the front wall 82 before flowing into the indoor intake 12.

[0025] Furthermore, by providing the protrusion 88 on the exterior part 17, the cold air entering through the opening 85 collides with the protrusion 88, increasing the airflow onto the inner surface 83b of the guide wall 83.

[0026] As a result, indoor air from the inlet 84 flows to the indoor intake 12 without touching the inner surface 82b of the front wall 82 on the first direction side, and also flows to the indoor intake 12 without touching the inner surface 83b of the guide wall 83, thus suppressing condensation on the inner surface 83b of the guide wall 83. Furthermore, the cold air that enters the air passage 81 from the opening 85 mixes with the air that entered from the inlet 84 by the time it reaches the inner surface 82b of the front wall 82, thus mitigating the cold and suppressing condensation on the outer surface 82a of the front wall 82. As a result, even when the airflow direction changing section 91 of the indoor air outlet 13 is directed towards the indoor intake 12 for cooling operation, condensation on the front panel 80 is suppressed, providing excellent condensation resistance, preventing a decrease in operating performance due to short circuits, and preventing a deterioration in running costs.

[0027] The front panel 80 may also be positioned vertically to cover a portion of the first direction side of the indoor air intake 12 when viewed from the front, as shown in Figure 8.

[0028] Furthermore, the intersection (corner) between the front wall 82 and the guide wall 83 of the front panel 80 does not need to be at a right angle; the front wall 82 and the guide wall 83 may be connected by a gentle curve. Furthermore, the guide wall 83 of the front panel 80 does not need to intersect the front wall 82 at a right angle; the interior angle between the front wall 82 and the guide wall 83 may be slightly larger than a right angle.

[0029] The other configurations used in this embodiment are presented as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. It can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims of the invention and its equivalents. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0030] 1: Window air conditioner 12: Indoor intake port 13: Indoor air outlet 17:Exterior part 31: Indoor fan 33: Evaporator 43: Condenser 51: Compressor 52: Pressure reducing device 53: Refrigerant piping 54: Refrigeration cycle 80: Front Panel 81: Wind path 82:Front wall 82c: end 83: Guide Wall 84: Entry point 85: Opening 88: Convex part

Claims

1. The main unit comprises a refrigeration cycle through which a compressor, condenser, pressure reducing device, and evaporator are connected by refrigerant piping, allowing the refrigerant to flow. The indoor air intake port located on the front side of the main unit, An indoor air outlet is positioned perpendicularly to the front side of the main body, adjacent to the aforementioned indoor air intake, An indoor fan that draws in air from the indoor intake port and blows it out from the indoor outlet port via the evaporator, Equipped with, When the direction from the indoor air intake to the adjacent indoor air outlet is considered the first direction, A front panel positioned perpendicularly to the entire surface of the indoor air intake, covering at least the surface on the first direction side, The air passage between the aforementioned front panel and the aforementioned indoor air intake, Furthermore, The aforementioned front panel is A front wall that forms a surface covering the indoor air intake when viewed from the front, A guide wall is erected with the end of the front wall in the first direction as the starting point and the exterior portion that separates the indoor intake port and the indoor outlet port of the main body as the destination point, An air inlet is provided between the ends of the front wall opposite to the first direction and in the vertical direction and the main body, Equipped with, The window air conditioner is characterized in that the guide wall has an opening on the destination side.

2. The exterior portion includes a protrusion that extends outward from the main body toward the air passage side from the guide wall. The window air conditioner according to feature 1.

Images