Ceiling-Embedded Air Conditioner Main Plate for Low-Loss Airflow Mixing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing ceiling-embedded air conditioners face performance issues due to mixing losses between main and circulation flows, which are exacerbated by the complexity and increased manufacturing costs associated with additional components used to guide flow directions.
Innovation Solution
A ceiling-embedded air conditioner design featuring a main plate with a tapered portion and recesses defined by a cylindrical and disk plate portion, where openings in the cylindrical plate portion allow the circulation flow to exit radially outward, reducing the angle of flow junction and minimizing mixing losses without increasing the number of components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a separate component is added to guide the circulation flow, then the flow direction control is improved, but the device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The circulation flow guide component is merged with the main plate by forming it as a recess on the upper surface of the main plate. This integration eliminates the need for separate components while maintaining the flow guidance function, thereby reducing device complexity and manufacturing cost while preserving reliable flow direction control.
2Temperature
If the circulation flow joins the main flow at a right angle, then the cooling effect is improved, but mixing loss increases and performance decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The recess is positioned at a specific location on the upper surface of the main plate to locally guide the circulation flow. This localized flow guidance ensures that the circulation flow joins the main flow at an optimized angle rather than perpendicular, reducing mixing loss while maintaining effective motor cooling through controlled flow interaction.
3Ease of manufacture
If the main plate structure is simplified, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but flow guidance capability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The main plate is segmented into functional regions: the tapered portion for structural support, the recess for circulation flow guidance, and the opening for flow passage. This segmentation allows each region to perform its specific function effectively while maintaining an integrated, cost-effective structure that does not require additional components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration simplifies the design, reduces mixing losses, and enhances performance while maintaining cost-effectiveness by eliminating the need for additional components, thereby improving the air conditioner's efficiency and durability.
Implementation Method 1
a turbofan including an impeller attached to a lower surface of the main plate in the casing at intervals in a circumferential direction, the impeller being configured to send air introduced from the suction port radially outward
Implementation Method 2
a heat exchanger provided to surround the turbofan in the casing and passed through by air that is sent from the turbofan and flows toward the outlet port
Implementation Method 3
a part of the air taken into the casing forms a circulation flow that goes around the turbofan from above and flows into the upper side of the main plate. The air that has cooled the motor joins the main flow
Data Source
AI summary
A ceiling-embedded air conditioner includes, a casing, a motor including an output shaft protruding downward, the output shaft being driven to rotate about an axis, a main plate fixed to the output shaft and extending radially outward, a turbofan including an impeller, a heat exchanger passed through by air that is sent from the turbofan. And the main plate includes, a tapered portion, a recess formed to be recessed radially inward from the tapered portion, the recess being defined by a cylindrical plate portion extending along the axis, and a disk plate portion extending radially outward from the upper end of the cylindrical plate portion. And an opening is formed in the cylindrical plate portion, the opening penetrates the cylindrical plate portion in the radial direction, and configured such that a circulation flow that exits from the impeller and flows around above the main plate passes through the opening.