Air Conditioner Shutter Control to Prevent Foreign Substance Jamming
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Air conditioning apparatuses face operational failures due to foreign substances invading through the upper air-blowing port and getting stuck at the lower damper, preventing normal operation upon startup.
Innovation Solution
The air conditioning apparatus includes a shutter driving section that opens the lower air-blowing port fully after or before the fan is stopped, ensuring any foreign substance can be easily removed without being caught in the shutter mechanism, and the shutter is designed to rotate around a shaft in the lower air-blowing path, eliminating level differences in the path's wall surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of energy
If the lower damper is kept closed after stopping cooling operation to prevent cold air leakage, then energy efficiency is improved, but foreign substances can invade from the upper air-blowing port and get stuck at the closed lower damper, causing operational failure
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit opens the lower damper before the fan stops rotating, creating a clear air path before potential foreign substance invasion occurs. This preliminary action prevents foreign substances from being trapped at the damper, ensuring reliable operation while maintaining energy efficiency during the transition period.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the lower damper position based on operational state transitions. During cooling operation, the damper remains closed for energy efficiency. During heating operation or fan stoppage, the damper opens to prevent foreign substance accumulation. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction between energy efficiency and operational reliability.
2Loss of energy
If the lower damper remains closed during heating operation to maintain temperature control, then thermal efficiency is improved, but foreign substances accumulate and prevent normal opening/closing operation
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit opens the lower damper before initiating heating operation, ensuring the air path is clear of foreign substances. This preliminary action prevents accumulation issues while maintaining thermal efficiency during actual heating operation, as the damper remains open only during transition periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The lower damper undergoes periodic opening/closing cycles: closed during cooling operation for thermal efficiency, opened before fan stoppage and during heating operation to prevent foreign substance accumulation. This periodic action pattern resolves the contradiction between maintaining thermal efficiency and ensuring operational ease.
3Manufacturing precision
If the shutter is designed to rotate around a shaft in the lower air-blowing path, then manufacturing precision is improved by eliminating level differences, but device complexity increases due to additional rotational mechanism
Solution Approach 1:
The shutter is integrated with the lower air-blowing path structure, combining the shutter function with the path wall. The shutter rotates around a shaft that is part of the path structure, merging multiple functions into a single integrated component. This reduces device complexity while maintaining manufacturing precision by eliminating level differences between the shutter and path surfaces.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An air conditioning apparatus is provided with an indoor fan (8) for blowing air, upper and lower air blowing ports (22a, 22b) for blowing the air supplied from the indoor fan (8) for air conditioning, a lower shutter (30) for opening and closing the lower air blowing port (22b), and a shutter driving section (31) for driving the shutter (30). After stopping operation of the indoor fan (8), the shutter (30) is driven by the shutter driving section (31) to have the lower air blowing port (22b) fully opened. When the shutter (30) is fully opened, a side surface of the shutter (30) forms a part of a lower wall surface among wall surfaces of a lower air blowing path (P2) for leading the air supplied form the indoor fan (8) to the lower air blowing port (22b).