Air conditioner
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional air conditioners stop the compressor during heating operation, leading to a disruption in indoor air conditioning and user comfort.
Innovation Solution
An air conditioner design that includes a bypass circuit and two-way valves to control refrigerant flow, delaying compressor stoppage and maintaining heating operation while ensuring user comfort through temperature management and defrosting operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the compressor is stopped when indoor temperature is stabilized during heating operation, then power consumption is reduced, but indoor air conditioning is interrupted and user comfort is impaired
Solution Approach 1:
The bypass circuit maintains continuous refrigerant circulation through the system even when the compressor stops. By creating an alternative flow path that bypasses the compressor, the system ensures that heating continues without interruption, maintaining user comfort while allowing the compressor to stop for power savings.
Solution Approach 2:
The bypass circuit acts as an intermediary pathway that mediates between the need to stop the compressor for energy savings and the need to maintain continuous heating for comfort. This intermediate circuit allows refrigerant to circulate through the heat exchangers without passing through the compressor, enabling decoupling of compression function from heating function.
2Ease of operation
If the bypass circuit is opened to maintain heating operation, then user comfort is maintained, but the compressor-stop condition becomes harder to satisfy and compressor runs longer
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the bypass circuit opening based on operating conditions. The control unit monitors temperature stabilization and compressor-stop conditions, opening the bypass circuit only when appropriate to maintain heating while managing compressor runtime. This dynamic control optimizes the balance between comfort and compressor operation duration.
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
The solution allows for continuous heating operation while maintaining user comfort and reducing power consumption, preventing extreme temperature drops and ensuring effective defrosting.
Implementation Method 1
the refrigerant flowing from the compressor toward the indoor heat exchanger lowers in pressure, so that the temperature of the indoor heat exchanger can be lowered
Implementation Method 2
a heat storage device having a heat storage material disposed in a state of surrounding the compressor and storing the heat generated in the compressor
Implementation Method 3
a heat storage heat exchanger exchanging heat between the heat stored in the heat storage material and the refrigerant
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The air conditioner is capable of executing heating operation while user's comfort is maintained. The air conditioner includes an indoor temperature detection means 7 for detecting an indoor temperature, and a target temperature setting means for setting a target temperature, wherein a specified compressor-stop condition that is satisfied when a state that the indoor temperature is higher than the target temperature by a specified temperature difference has lasted for a specified duration time is previously set, and wherein after the indoor temperature has exceeded the target temperature and when the specified compressor-stop condition is satisfied, the compressor 11 is stopped. The air conditioner further includes a bypass circuit 16 for connecting one point between the indoor heat exchanger 5 and the pressure reducer 13 with another point between the four-way valve 12 and an inlet port of the compressor 11, and a bypass-use two-way valve 17 provided in the bypass circuit 16. After the indoor temperature has exceeded the target temperature and before the specified compressor-stop condition is satisfied, the bypass-use two-way valve 17 is opened. Thus, the likelihood that the compressor 11 may be stopped and the air conditioning may be stopped is lowered, so that the indoor user's comfort can be maintained.