Refrigerating cycle apparatus
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for determining refrigerant amount in refrigerating cycle apparatuses are labor-intensive, inaccurate, and fail to account for varying environmental and installation conditions, leading to decreased air conditioning efficiency and potential refrigerant leakage.
Innovation Solution
A refrigerating cycle apparatus with a storage part for the appropriate refrigerant amount, a measurement part for operation state detection, a calculation part using correction coefficients to determine refrigerant amounts, and a comparison part to accurately assess refrigerant excess or shortage, regardless of environmental or installation conditions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If regression analysis is employed for calculating the refrigerant amount, then the refrigerant amount can be determined, but numerous test parameters must be determined which takes much labor and time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-determines the correlation between operation state amounts and refrigerant amount through regression analysis during the design phase. The estimation formula and necessary parameters are prepared in advance, so that during actual operation, the refrigerant amount can be calculated quickly using readily available operation data without requiring time-consuming parameter determination.
2Measurement precision
If special operation is executed aimed at refrigerant amount calculation, then the accuracy of refrigerant amount calculation is improved, but the air conditioning capability and efficiency are decreased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables continuous air conditioning operation while simultaneously performing refrigerant amount calculation using normal operation data. The system calculates refrigerant amount based on operation state amounts (temperatures, pressures, flow rates) that are continuously available during normal air conditioning operation, eliminating the need for special operations that would interrupt service.
3Ease of operation
If refrigerant amount is calculated in accordance with conventional method, then calculation can be performed, but outdoor air temperature differences cause calculation accuracy to change depending on installation location and seasonal factors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates outdoor air temperature as a variable parameter in the estimation formula. The correlation between operation state amounts and refrigerant amount is established to account for temperature variations, allowing the calculation to adapt to different seasonal conditions and installation locations while maintaining accuracy.
4Device complexity
If phenomena such as uneven distribution of refrigerant to paths occur, then the calculation trend differs from actual measurement trend, but sufficiently high calculation accuracy is difficult to obtain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses multiple operation state amounts (temperatures, pressures, flow rates) from different locations in the refrigerating circuit as input parameters for the estimation formula. This multi-parameter feedback approach compensates for uneven refrigerant distribution effects, as the combined information from various measurement points provides a more accurate representation of the overall refrigerant state.
Data Source
AI summary
A refrigerating cycle apparatus is obtained that can determine excess/shortage of a refrigerant amount in a refrigerating circuit at high precision even if a factor such as a heat exchanger whose refrigerant amount is difficult to calculate exists. The refrigerating cycle apparatus according to the present invention includes one heat source unit or more, one utilization unit or more, a refrigerating circuit constituted by the heat source unit and utilization unit, a storage part which stores an appropriate refrigerant amount of a refrigerant to be charged in the refrigerating circuit and a correction coefficient which corrects a liquid refrigerant amount such that calculation of the refrigerant amount of each constituent element of the refrigerating circuit is equal to the appropriate refrigerant amount, a measurement part which detects an operation state amount in each constituent element of the refrigerating circuit, a calculation part which calculates the refrigerant amount of each constituent element of the refrigerating circuit based on the operation state amount by using the correction coefficient, a comparison part which compares the appropriate refrigerant amount with a calculative refrigerant amount calculated by the calculation part, and a determination part which determines excess/shortage of the refrigerant amount charged in the refrigerating circuit based on a comparison result of the comparison part.