Indoor Unit Flap Marking for Remote Outlet Identification
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Solution Overview
Problem
In indoor air conditioning units with multiple flaps, users face difficulties in identifying and controlling individual flaps, especially when the remote control is distant from the unit, making it hard to recognize which flap is being operated.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves providing sign sections on the indoor unit as raised or recessed portions, or through stickers, which are easily recognizable and can include characters, figures, or combinations, arranged clockwise or counterclockwise, and can be made more noticeable with gloss or light-emitting features, allowing users to identify outlets and flaps more reliably.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If flaps are individually controlled with remote control, then each flap can be operated independently, but it becomes difficult to identify which flap is being operated when the remote control is distant from the indoor unit
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies visual identification markers (sign sections) on or near the flaps that can be seen from a distance. These markers may include different colors, patterns, or reflective materials that allow users to easily distinguish and identify specific flaps when operating the remote control from a distance, thereby resolving the identification difficulty while maintaining individual flap control capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces sign sections as intermediary visual elements that mediate between the flap mechanism and the user's visual perception. These sign sections serve as a communication bridge, allowing users to correlate remote control operations with specific flap positions even when physically distant from the indoor unit
2Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If multiple flaps with different shapes are used for identification, then each outlet can be individually identified, but the manufacturing complexity and number of parts increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of creating multiple flap shapes, the patent applies visual identification markers (sign sections) that can be printed or attached to standard uniform flaps. These markers use color, pattern, or symbolic differences to provide unique identification for each outlet, maintaining manufacturing simplicity while achieving effective outlet differentiation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses sign sections as visual copies or representations of outlet identities. Rather than physically shaping each flap differently, the sign sections provide a visual copy of the outlet's unique identity through markers that can be consistently reproduced during manufacturing, reducing complexity while maintaining identification capability
Data Source
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AI summary
An indoor unit and an air conditioner configured so that each outlet and each flap can be easily identified. An indoor unit (1) is provided with outlets (32a-32d) which discharge air-conditioning air toward the interior space, and also with flaps (35a-35d) having substantially the same shape, the flaps (35a-35d) being respectively disposed at the outlets (32a-32d) and capable of individually changing the discharge directions of the air-conditioning air. Sign sections (60a-60d) which are different from each other are formed either in the vicinities, respectively, of the outlets (32a-32d) or on the flaps (35a-35d), respectively.