Refrigeration – Refrigeration producer – With lubricant handling means
Patent
1996-02-22
1997-10-07
Tanner, Harry B.
Refrigeration
Refrigeration producer
With lubricant handling means
62193, F25B 100
Patent
active
056735707
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to an oil equalizing operation control device for an air conditioner having a plurality of thermal source units.
BACKGROUND ART
There has been a conventional air conditioner in which a compressor, a four-way selector valve, an outdoor heat exchanger, a motor-operated expansion valve and an indoor heat exchanger are connected in order as disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Gazette No. 3-186156. In cooling operation, by the switching of the four-way selector valve, refrigerant discharged from the compressor is condensed by the outdoor heat exchanger, is expanded by the motor-operated expansion valve and is then evaporated by the indoor heat exchanger. In heating operation, by the switching of the fourway selector valve, refrigerant discharged from the compressor is condensed by the indoor heat exchanger, is expanded by the motor-operated expansion valve and is then evaporated by the outdoor heat exchanger.
Since the above-mentioned air conditioner has a single outdoor unit, no regard is needed for oil equalizing operation if only oil backing operation is performed.
Accompanying with the recent increased capacity of an air conditioner, there has been developed an air conditioner in which a plurality of outdoor units are provided. In this case, lubricating oil is discharged from each of the compressors of the outdoor units. However, since lubricating oil is not necessarily returned to each of the compressors of the outdoor units by the same amount as discharged therefrom, oil collecting phenomena that lubricating oil is collected to the compressor of one of the outdoor units may occur.
When the above oil collecting phenomena occur, one of the compressors may cause lack in lubricating oil. This presents a problem that air conditioning cannot be continued.
This invention has been made in view of the above problem and has its object of eliminating oil collecting phenomena to prevent lack in lubricating oil when an air conditioner is provided with a plurality of thermal source units.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
In order to attain the above object, this invention takes measures of conducting lubricating oil from an oil reserving part on the high-pressure side of a compressor of one thermal source unit to the low-pressure side of another thermal source unit.
In detail, as shown in FIG. 1, the invention is an air conditioner comprising: a plurality of thermal source units (2A, 2B, . . . ) each having at least a compressor (21) and a thermal-source-side heat exchanger (24); a main liquid line (7L) to which the plural thermal source units (2A, 2B, . . . ) are connected in parallel with one another; a main gas line (7G) to which the plural thermal source units (2A, 2B, . . . ) are connected in parallel with one another; and a user unit (3A) which has at least a used-side heat exchanger (32) and is connected to the main liquid line (7L) and the main gas line (7G), in which refrigerant discharged from the compressor (21) is condensed by one of the heat exchangers (24, 32), is expanded by the expansion mechanism (25) and is then evaporated by the other heat exchanger (32, 24).
In addition, there are provided oil equalization mechanisms (9A, 9B, . . . ) for conducting lubricating oil stored in an oil reserving part (91) provided on the discharge side of the compressor (21) of each of the thermal source units (2A, 2B, . . . ) to the suction side of the compressor (21) of the other thermal source unit (2A, 2B, . . . ).
The oil equalization mechanisms (9A, 9B, . . . ) each conduct only surplus lubricating oil above a set amount of storage out of lubricating oil stored in the oil reserving part (91) to the suction side of the compressor (21) of the other thermal source unit (2A, 2B, . . . ).
The compressor (21) has an oil discharge mechanism (40) for discharging, when lubricating oil stored in the compressor (21) exceeds a set amount, the excess of lubricating oil and the oil equalization mechanisms (9A, 9B) each conduct only surplus lubricating oil above a set amount
REFERENCES:
patent: 3201949 (1965-08-01), Kocher
patent: 4557115 (1985-12-01), Nakamura
patent: 5094598 (1992-03-01), Amata et al.
patent: 5279131 (1994-01-01), Urushihata et al.
Cole Thomas W.
Daikin Industries Ltd.
Ferguson Jr. Gerald J.
Tanner Harry B.
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