Refrigeration – Gas controller or director
Reexamination Certificate
1999-04-22
2001-08-14
Doerrler, William (Department: 3744)
Refrigeration
Gas controller or director
C062S415000, C062S416000, C062S179000, C062S180000, C062S426000, C062S525000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06272880
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an air conditioner and particularly relates to an air conditioner including a plurality of heat-use-side heat exchangers.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
There is a conventional type air conditioner having an heat-use-side unit as an indoor unit and a duct connected to the heat-use-side unit and communicated with rooms (See, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Gazette No.4-270851).
Conditioned air produced in the heat-use-side unit is delivered from the heat-use-side unit to the rooms through the duct. The rooms are air-conditioned by the conditioned air.
Another example of conventional air conditioners is of a rooftop type. In the rooftop type air conditioner, a heat-source-side unit and a heat-use-side unit are contained in a single casing thereby forming a main body of the air conditioner. The main body is installed on a rooftop of a building. A duct is extended from the main body to the rooms in the building. Conditioned air produced in the main body is delivered to the rooms through the duct.
As is understood from the foregoing, in the above conventional air conditioners, the duct connected to the heat-use-side unit or the main body is branched into plural branch ducts, and the plural branch ducts are communicated individually with a plurality of air conditioning zones such as rooms.
In other words, conditioned air produced in the single heat-use-side unit or the main body of the air conditioner is delivered to the plural air conditioning zones. Therefore, the conditioned air is at a uniform temperature. This arises a problem that individual temperature control on each of the air conditioning zones is very much difficult.
Specifically, there is a case where the air conditioning zones have different heat loads. In this case, the air conditioning zones cannot be supplied individually with conditioned air streams at temperatures in response to the heat loads thereof. This arises a problem of deteriorating comfortableness.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems and therefore has its object of achieving improvement in comfortableness by enabling the supply of conditioned air streams in response to different heat loads.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In the present invention, a single casing is divided into a plurality of heat-use-side spaces and heat-use-side heat exchangers are contained in the plurality of heat-use-side spaces, respectively.
More specifically, an air conditioner of the present invention includes a casing in which a plurality of heat-use-side spaces are formed. In the heat-use-side spaces of the casing, heat-use-side heat exchangers are contained respectively. Further, in the casing, a plurality of suction ports for air open to the respective heat-use-side spaces and a plurality of delivery ports for conditioned air open to the respective heat-use-side spaces are formed. The plurality of heat-use-side heat exchangers are connected to a heat-source-side heat exchanger to form refrigerant circuitry.
Alternatively, the casing containing the heat-source-side heat exchanger may be formed integrally with the casing containing the heat-use-side heat exchangers to constitute a single casing.
At least one of the suction ports and the delivery ports may be connected to a duct communicating with a room.
Another air conditioner of the present invention includes a casing in which a heat-source-side space and a plurality of heat-use-side spaces are formed. In the heat-source-side space of the casing, a heat-source-side heat exchanger is contained. In the heat-use-side spaces of the casing, heat-use-side heat exchangers are contained respectively. Further, in the casing, a plurality of suction ports for air open to the respective heat-use-side spaces and a plurality of delivery ports for conditioned air open to the respective heat-use-side spaces are formed. At least one of the suction ports and the delivery ports is connected to a duct communicating with a room. In addition, the heat-source-side heat exchanger is connected to the plurality of heat-use-side heat exchangers to form refrigerant circuitry.
The casing may be installed on a rooftop.
Liquid lines in the refrigerant circuitry preferably include expansion mechanisms individually provided between a branch part of refrigerant piping and respective ones of the heat-use-side heat exchangers.
In the casing, an open-air intake may be formed for taking open air in at least one of the heat-use-side spaces.
Heat-recycling heat exchangers for applying heat to dehumidified air may be contained individually in the heat-use-side spaces and may be connected to the refrigerant circuitry.
The refrigerant circuitry may be provided with connection ports for connecting an additional heat exchanger thereto.
Heat-use-side units each containing one of the heat use-side heat exchangers may be contained in the heat-use-side spaces, respectively, and may be formed in the same arrangements of components in the respective heat-use-side spaces.
Heat-use-side units each containing one of the heat-use-side heat exchangers may be contained in the heat-useside spaces, respectively, and the heat-use-side unit in the heat-use-side space of one type and the heat-use-side unit in the heat-use-side space of the other type may be formed in symmetric arrangements of components.
At least either of the suction ports and the delivery ports may be formed at the same positions with respect to the heat-use-side spaces.
At least either of the suction ports and the delivery ports may be formed so that the port open to the heat-use-side space of one type and the port open to the heat-use-side space of the other type are at symmetric positions.
Ports of at least one type out of the suction ports, the delivery ports and the open-air intakes may be formed at the same positions with respect to the heat-use-side spaces.
Ports of at least one type out of the suction ports, the delivery ports and the open-air intakes may be formed so that the port open to the heat-use-side space of one type and the port open to the heat-use-side space of the other type are at symmetric positions.
In the present invention, during a circulation of refrigerant through the refrigerant circuitry, the refrigerant condenses in the heat-source-side heat exchanger, flows into the heat-use-side heat exchangers and evaporates therein. This circulation of refrigerant is repeated. On the other hand, individual air streams flowing into the heat-use-side spaces through the suction ports are heat-exchanged into conditioned air streams by the heat-use-side heat exchangers, respectively. The conditioned air streams are blown off from the delivery ports, respectively.
The conditioned air streams are delivered to the rooms through for example the ducts, respectively. This leads to generation of a plurality of conditioned air streams adjusted individually to different temperatures in response to different heat loads in the respective rooms. The conditioned air streams are delivered individually to the rooms.
In each of the heat-use-side heat exchangers, individual control of each refrigerant flow is exercised in response to the heat load by using, for example, the expansion mechanism.
Open air may be taken in each of the heat-use-side spaces through the open-air intake. In this case, fresh air is supplied to the room.
If the heat-recycling heat exchanger is provided in each of the heat-use-side spaces, air is cooled and dehumidified in each of the heat-use-side heat exchangers. Thereafter, the dehumidified air is heated by the heat-recycling heat exchanger and is then delivered to the room. As a result, such humidity-adjusted conditioned air is delivered to the room.
The refrigerant circuitry is connected to for example various kinds of additional heat exchangers through connection ports. As a result, an additional function such as air conditioning of a small room is imparted.
According to the present invention, since the plurality of heat-use-side spaces are formed in the casing and the heat-use-side heat exchangers are dis
Fujiwara Yasushi
Matsumoto Akihito
Miki Hiroshi
Yoshimitsu Satoru
Daikin Industries Ltd.
Doerrler William
Nixon & Peabody LLP
Shulman Mark S.
Studebaker Donald R.
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