Air-Conditioning Heat Medium Preheating for Reliable Optimal Start-Up
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Solution Overview
Problem
In air-conditioning systems that use a heat medium for indoor space conditioning, the temperature of the heat medium can fluctuate significantly, making it challenging to achieve the set indoor space temperature before the scheduled start-up time, especially during extreme weather conditions.
Innovation Solution
An air-conditioning management apparatus that includes a heat source unit, indoor units, and a refrigerant-heat-medium heat exchanger, with a controller that performs preheating or precooling control to ensure the heat medium temperature falls within a target range before optimal start-up, thereby stabilizing the indoor space temperature at the set time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If optimal start-up control is performed without considering heat medium temperature, then the air-conditioning apparatus can be started before set time, but the indoor space temperature cannot reach the set temperature before the set time due to heat medium temperature variations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary heating or cooling of the heat medium before the optimal start-up control begins. The controller monitors the heat medium temperature and activates preheating or precooling operations to ensure the heat medium reaches a target temperature range in advance, creating favorable conditions for subsequent optimal start-up control to achieve the set indoor temperature by the scheduled time
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the preheating or precooling operation based on real-time heat medium temperature measurements. The controller continuously monitors the heat medium temperature and modulates the preheating/precooling intensity and duration to maintain the heat medium temperature within an optimal range, adapting to varying environmental conditions and ensuring reliable temperature control
2Reliability
If preheating or precooling control is performed to stabilize heat medium temperature, then the indoor space temperature can reach set temperature reliably, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The controller integrates multiple functions including heat medium temperature monitoring, preheating control, precooling control, and optimal start-up control into a single control unit. This multi-functional approach consolidates the control system rather than adding separate dedicated systems, managing to improve reliability while minimizing the increase in overall system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback control by continuously monitoring the heat medium temperature and using this information to adjust the preheating or precooling operations. The controller receives temperature data, compares it with target values, and automatically modulates the preheating/precooling intensity, creating a self-regulating system that improves reliability through automated adjustment rather than complex manual control mechanisms
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 approach prevents variations in heat medium temperature at different start-up times, allowing the indoor space temperature to reach the set temperature reliably and efficiently, reducing power consumption by optimizing the preheating or precooling duration based on environmental conditions.
Implementation Method 1
a refrigerant-heat-medium heat exchanger configured to cause heat exchange to be performed between refrigerant that flows in the heat source unit and a heat medium that flows in the one or more indoor units to heat or cool the heat medium
Implementation Method 2
heat exchange is performed between the heat medium and air in the indoor space, to thereby cool or heat the indoor space
Data Source
AI summary
An air-conditioning management apparatus includes: a storage unit that stores a schedule including a set time and a set temperature; a communication processing unit that communicates with the air-conditioning apparatus and receives operation status information including a heat medium temperature; and a controller that performs a schedule control to control the air-conditioning apparatus according to the schedule. The schedule control includes an optimal start-up control to control the air-conditioning apparatus such that an indoor space temperature reaches the set temperature at the set time, by starting an operation of the air-conditioning apparatus before the set time. The controller performs a preheating control or a precooling control to control the heat source unit such that before the optimal start-up control is started, the heat medium temperature included in the operation status information obtained from the air-conditioning apparatus falls within a target range including a previously set target heat medium temperature.