JP2001328418A - Vehicular air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vehicular air conditioner capable of setting a mutual temperature difference between respective blowoff ports 12 to 14 over a wide range and allowed to miniaturize an air conditioning unit 2 without increasing ventilation resistance. SOLUTION: A heater core 6 is formed laterally long in the vehicle lateral direction more than an evaporator 5. The heater core 6 is arranged so as to laterally project to a width of the evaporator 5. Thus, a blowoff temperature of a lateral part 19 becomes higher than a central part 18 in the vehicle lateral direction of the air conditioning unit 2 so as to form a laminar flow such as cold air in the central part 18 in the vehicle lateral direction and hot air in the lateral part 19, and the mutual temperature difference between the respective blowoff ports 12 to 14 can be freely set by adjusting a position of the respective blowoff ports 12 to 14 in the lateral direction by using the laminar flow of the cold air and the hot air in this lateral direction.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner for a vehicle, and more particularly, to an air conditioner in which an evaporator (evaporator and heat exchanger for cooling) and a heater core (heat exchanger for heating) are arranged in an integrated air conditioner. The present invention relates to a vertical integrated air conditioner disposed substantially at the center in the left-right direction of a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art With an increase in the cooler mounting rate, it has been studied to house an evaporator and a heater core in one unit and to abolish the conventional cooler unit, particularly in a vehicle air conditioner. In contrast to a conventional horizontal air conditioner in which a blower unit, a cooler unit, and a heater unit are arranged in a horizontal line in the lateral direction of the vehicle, this type of vehicle air conditioner is often referred to as a vertical integrated air conditioner.

[0003] Combining the cooler unit and the heater unit into one air conditioning unit not only increases the foot space in the vehicle interior, but also reduces the material, manufacturing and assembly costs by integrating the units. .

FIG. 3 shows an example of a conventional vertical integrated air conditioner, in which (a) is a front view and (b) is a sectional view taken along line AA in (a). The evaporator 5 and the heater core 6 are arranged substantially vertically and arranged in the up-down direction of the vehicle. Blower unit 21
Is introduced into the inlet 4 at the lower side of the air conditioning unit 2, and the air flows upward in the order of the evaporator 5 and the heater core 6, so that the airflow can be made compact in the front-rear direction of the vehicle and the ventilation resistance can be reduced. There is an advantage.

[0005]

However, in such an air-conditioning unit 2 of a vertical integrated air conditioner, a bi-level mode (where the air outlet temperature is in the middle range between high and low temperatures, and the air outlet is directed to the upper body 12). And when the foot outlets 13 facing the feet are respectively half-opened), the temperature difference between the outlet temperature from the face outlet 12 and the outlet temperature from the foot outlet 13 is unnecessarily large. is there.

[0006] Since the outlet temperature is in the middle range, the cold air flow passing through the evaporator 5 and then passing through the cool air bypass passage 7 and the hot air flow passing through the evaporator 5 and then heated through the heater core 6 are air-mixed. And set the outlet temperature.

However, this was not mixed well,
The cool air flow passing through the cool air bypass passage 7 on the rear side of the vehicle exits the face outlet 12 as it is and becomes lower than the set temperature,
This is because the warm air flow passing through the heater core 6 on the front side of the vehicle directly exits the foot outlet 13 and becomes higher than the set temperature. That is, the laminar flow of the cool air and the warm air in the vehicle front-rear direction in the air conditioning unit 2 does not mix, and the air flows out of the air outlet as it is.

This is not a problem if the temperature of a so-called head-and-foot type is controlled.
The difference between the temperature and the temperature of the foot outlet 13 differs depending on the vehicle manufacturer and vehicle type, and an isothermal temperature may be required.

On the other hand, conventionally, a cool air blowing prevention rib 32 is provided in the middle of the cool air bypass passage 7 to prevent the cool air from flowing directly to the face outlet 12, and to secure the air mixing section 31 sufficiently. It was considered that the mixed wind was distributed to each outlet.

However, in this method, the face outlet 12
The temperature difference between the air outlet and the foot outlet 13 cannot be set freely, and the structure for aiming for the cold air blow-out prevention rib 32 and sufficient air mixing increases the ventilation resistance and makes the air conditioning unit 2 larger in the vehicle vertical direction. Or cause.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and is intended for a vehicle in which the temperature difference between the outlets can be set in a wide range and the air conditioning unit can be reduced in size without increasing the ventilation resistance. It is intended to provide an air conditioner.

[0012]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is characterized in that the heater core (6) is longer than the evaporator (5).

This is because the heater core is made laterally longer than the evaporator, so that when air is passed through the heater core, the width of the heater core is larger than that of the central portion which overlaps with the evaporator and becomes the main flow, and the end portion protrudes from the evaporator. Temperature rises, cold air in the center,
A laminar flow of warm air is created at the end where the heater core protrudes.

[0014] The invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the heater core (6) is longer in the vehicle left-right direction than the evaporator (5).

Thus, when air is passed through the heater core, a laminar flow of cold air and warm air is generated in the vehicle front-rear direction in the air conditioning unit in the past, but the heater core is moved in the vehicle left-right direction by the evaporator. By making the air-conditioning unit horizontally long, a portion having a high blowing temperature is formed in the center portion of the air conditioning unit in the left-right direction of the vehicle, and a laminar flow of cool air in the center portion and warm air in the left-right direction is generated.

In order to make the heat exchanger have such a width relation, the evaporator is laid out long and short in the front and rear even though the heat capacity is the same as that of the conventional one, so that the air conditioning unit can have a large foot space for the occupants in the passenger compartment. Shape.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, each of the air outlets (12, 13, 14) is formed in the air conditioning unit (2).
Further, the heater core (6) is made longer in the vehicle left-right direction than the evaporator (5), and the heater core (6) is protruded left and right with respect to the positions of the horizontally long ends of the evaporator (5). .

Thus, when air is passed through the heater core, a laminar flow of cold air and hot air is generated in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle in the air conditioning unit in the related art, but the width of the heater core is made smaller than the width of the evaporator. By taking the left and right large, the air temperature of the left and right part of the air conditioning unit in the left and right direction of the vehicle becomes higher than the center part, and a laminar flow of cold air in the center part and warm air in the left and right part is created in the left and right direction of the vehicle. Become.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the position of each of the air outlets (12, 13, 14) formed in the air conditioning unit (2) in the vehicle left-right direction is determined by the position of each of the air outlets (12, 13, 1, 1).
4) It is characterized in that it is determined based on a temperature difference set between each other.

By using the laminar flow of the cold air and the hot air in the left and right directions created above, the opening position of each outlet can be set to the cold air position or the hot air position, or to the middle position. The basic temperature difference between the outlets can be freely set depending on the position.

[0021] This is based on the idea that the air is sufficiently mixed and then blown out, and the cold air and the hot air to be air-mixed are blown out together, and air-mixing is performed up to and including the duct, thereby reducing the size of the air-conditioning unit. can do.

In addition, since there is no need to provide a cool air blowing prevention rib or the like for forcibly air-mixing the air before blowing out, the air-conditioning air having a very low ventilation resistance and a large air flow can be supplied to the room. Can be.

Further, since the temperature difference can be changed by changing the opening position in the left-right direction, it is possible to cope with vehicles of different specifications by changing the opening position of the case using the same air conditioning unit.

[0024]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1A and 1B show one embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner of the present invention, in which FIG. 1A is a front view, and FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. FIG. 2 shows another arrangement example of each outlet in the present invention.

The vehicle air conditioner 1 comprises a blower unit 21 and an air conditioner unit 2, each having a blower unit case 22 and an air conditioner unit case 3, which are connected by a duct 23. These units 2
1 and 2 are mounted in the left-right direction along the dash panel of the vehicle. Although not particularly limited, the blower unit 21
Is mounted at the back of the instrument panel located at the foot of the passenger seat, and the air conditioning unit 2 is mounted at the back of the center console located at the center of the vehicle.

The blower unit case 22 has an outside air inlet (not shown) for taking in air outside the vehicle compartment, and an inside air inlet 24 for circulating room air. The inside air inlet 24 is formed directly in the blower unit case 22, while the outside air inlet communicates with an inlet formed in the cowl panel of the vehicle body via an air duct (both not shown). I have.

Although not shown, blower unit case 2
2, an inside / outside air door is rotatably provided, and a position between a position where the outside air intake is completely closed (inside air circulation mode) and a position where the inside air intake 24 is fully closed (outside air intake mode) is provided. It rotates and stops at its intermediate position (inside / outside air intake mode) as necessary.

The rotation of the inside / outside air door is performed by an inside / outside air door actuator attached to the blower unit case 22 or a manual wire. The inside air and the outside air are taken in by a fan (not shown) rotated by a fan motor 25.

In the air conditioning unit case 3, an inlet 4 for air blown from the blower unit 21 through the duct 23 is formed at a lower portion of a side surface of the air conditioning unit case 3. An evaporator (evaporator) 5 for cooling the intake air is provided near the inlet 4, and the evaporator 5 is provided with a compressor (compressor), a condenser (condenser), an expansion valve, and the like. This is one element of a refrigeration cycle configured by connecting a receiver (liquid receiver) and the like with a refrigerant pipe.

Since the main components such as the compressor, condenser, and receiver are provided in the engine room, these components are connected to the evaporator 5 through the dash panel by refrigerant piping. The operation and stop of the refrigeration cycle are performed by an air conditioner switch of a control panel provided on an instrument panel in the vehicle compartment.

A heater core 6 is provided above the evaporator 5 of the air conditioning unit case 3 so as to form a bypass 7. This heater core 6 is also arranged with its air passage surface 9 facing up and down. An air mix door 10 provided between the heater core 6 and the evaporator 5, that is, on the front surface of the heater core 6.
Thus, the ratio between the amount of air passing through the heater core 6 and the amount of air passing through the bypass 7 is adjusted.

The engine cooling water of the vehicle circulates through the heater core 6, and the air is heated by heat exchange between the engine cooling water and the air. The air mix door 10 is rotated between a position (max school) where the front surface of the heater core 6 is completely closed and a position (max hot) where the bypass path 7 is completely closed by an air mix door actuator or a manual wire. .

The air-conditioning unit 2 of this embodiment cools the air blown from the blower unit 21 by the above-described evaporator 5 and then controls the temperature by the heater core 6 and tunes the cabin from a desired outlet. It has a function to distribute air. For this purpose, an air mixing section 31 is formed at the uppermost portion (downstream side) of the air conditioning unit case 3, and a face outlet 12, a foot outlet 13 and a defroster outlet 14 are formed therein.

The face outlet 12 is connected to a face grill provided in front of an instrument panel in a vehicle cabin through an air duct or directly, and blows out conditioned air mainly toward the upper body of the occupant. The foot outlet 13 is opened under the occupant's feet in the vehicle cabin through an air duct extending downward from the air conditioning unit case 3, and mainly blows out warm air toward the occupants' feet.

The defroster outlet 14 is communicated with a defroster grill provided on the upper surface of the instrument panel through an air duct or directly, and blows low humidity air or warm air toward the inner surface of the windshield to remove fogging.

Each of the outlets 12, 13, 14
, A face door 15, a foot door 16, and a defroster door 17 are provided so as to be able to open and close respective air outlets. These doors 15, 16, 17 are connected by a mode door actuator or a manual wire via a link mechanism or the like. Operate.

That is, by selecting various blow-out modes such as a face mode, a bi-level mode, a foot mode, and a defroster mode, these doors operate according to a combination of opening and closing of the three doors 15, 16, and 17.

In the air conditioning unit 2 of the vehicle air conditioner 1 of this embodiment, a sub air mix door 11 is provided on the back of the heater core 6 and is connected by a link mechanism or the like so as to operate in conjunction with the air mix door 10. Have been.

The sub-air mix door 11 is provided to enhance the mixing property between the warm air and the cool air in the air mix section 31. For example, in a temperature control area where the air mix door 10 rotates to an intermediate position, The sub air mix door 11 also rotates to the intermediate position, whereby a part of the warm air passing through the heater core 6 collides with the cool air flowing down the bypass path 7 in a substantially right angle direction, and the mixing property is enhanced.

Next, each operation of the max school mode, the max hot mode and the temperature control mode will be described. First, in Mac school mode, foot outlet 1
3 and the defroster outlet 14 are fully closed, and the face outlet 12 is fully opened. Also, air-air mix door 1
0 indicates that the heater core 6 is fully closed. The sub air mix door 11 is not particularly limited.

In this way, the intake air introduced from the blower unit 21 to the inlet 4 rises while passing through the air passage surface 8 of the evaporator 5 and reaches the face outlet 12 as it is through the bypass passage 7. .

In the Max hot mode,
The face outlet 12 and the defroster outlet 14 are fully closed, and the foot outlet 13 is fully opened. In the air mix door 10, the heater core 6 is fully opened.

Thus, the intake air introduced from the blower unit 21 to the inlet 4 rises while passing through the air passage surface 8 of the evaporator 5, and the air mixing door 10
At the heater core 6 and passes through the heater core 6 to the foot outlet 13 as it is.

Further, in a bi-level mode (temperature control mode) for supplying air at an intermediate temperature, the defroster outlet 14 is fully closed, and the face outlet 12 and the foot outlet 13 are half-opened. Further, the air mix door 10 is set at a substantially middle position, and the sub air mix door 11 is also set at a substantially middle position.

In this way, the intake air introduced into the inlet 4 from the blower unit 21 rises while passing through the air passage surface 8 of the evaporator 5, but the air introduced into the heater core 6 by the air mix door 10. And the air guided to the bypass 7. The warm air that has passed through the heater core 6 collides with the cool air that has risen in the bypass path 7, is mixed to reach an appropriate temperature, and then reaches the face outlet 12.

Next, the features of this embodiment will be described.

According to the present embodiment, the heater core 6 is horizontally longer than the evaporator 5 in the vehicle left-right direction, and the heater core 6 is arranged so as to project right and left with respect to the width of the evaporator 5.

As a result, when air is passed through the heater core 6, a laminar flow of cold air and hot air is generated in the vehicle front-rear direction in the air conditioning unit 2 in the related art, but the width of the heater core 6 is reduced by the evaporator 5. Of the air-conditioning unit 2 in the left-right direction of the vehicle.
In contrast, the outlet temperature of the left and right portions 19 is increased, and a laminar flow of cold air is generated in the central portion 18 and warm air is generated in the left and right portions 19 in the vehicle left-right direction.

Further, in order to make the heat exchanger have such a width relation, the evaporator 5 is laid out long and short in the front and rear even though the heat capacity is the same as the conventional one, so that the air conditioner which can provide a large foot space for the occupant in the vehicle compartment. The unit 2 has a shape.

The positions of the air outlets 12, 13, and 14 formed in the air conditioning unit 2 in the left-right direction of the vehicle were determined based on the desired temperature difference between the air outlets 12, 13, and 14.

Specifically, the embodiment shown in FIG.
In contrast to the conventional problem that the face blowout temperature becomes lower than the set temperature and the foot blowout temperature becomes higher than the set temperature as described in the problem, the present invention makes full use of the features of the present invention. Foot outlet 13 in the area,
In this example, the face outlet 12 is arranged in the warm air region of the left and right portions 19 so that the foot outlet temperature is lower than the face outlet temperature.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, on the contrary, the face outlet 12 is provided in the cool air region of the central portion 18.
The foot outlet 13 is arranged in the warm air area of the left and right portions 19,
This is an example in which the foot outlet temperature is arranged to be higher than the face outlet temperature.

FIG. 2B shows that the face air outlet 12 and the foot air outlet 13 are provided in an intermediate area 20 which straddles the cold air area of the central portion 18 and the hot air area of the left and right portions 19, so that the foot air outlet temperature is increased. This is an example in which the arrangement is made such that there is no difference between the temperature and the face blowing temperature.

As described above, by utilizing the laminar flow of the cold air and the hot air in the left-right direction created as described above, the position of each outlet is set to the cold air position or the hot air position, or to the middle position. The temperature difference between the outlets 12, 13, 14 can be freely set depending on the position.

This is based on the idea that the air is sufficiently mixed and then blown out, and the cold air and the hot air to be air-mixed are blown together, and the air-conditioning unit 2 is miniaturized by performing air-mixing including the duct ahead of it. It can be.

Further, unlike the related art, since the cold air blowing prevention ribs 32 and the like for forcibly mixing the air before blowing are not required, the ventilation resistance is extremely small, and a large amount of conditioned air is supplied to the room. be able to.

Further, since the temperature difference can be changed by changing the opening position in the left-right direction, the same air conditioning unit 2 can be used to change the opening position of the case 3 for vehicles of different specifications.

The embodiments described above are described for facilitating the understanding of the present invention, and are not described for limiting the present invention. Therefore, each element disclosed in the above embodiment is intended to include all design changes and equivalents belonging to the technical scope of the present invention.

As described above, according to the present invention, the face outlet 12, the foot outlet 13, the defroster outlet 1
In addition, it is possible to provide the vehicle air conditioner 1 in which the temperature difference between the air outlets 4 can be set freely and the air conditioning unit 2 can be reduced in size without increasing the ventilation resistance.

(Other Embodiments) The present invention may be applied to a vertical integrated air conditioner in which the evaporator 5 and the heater core 6 are arranged substantially upright and arranged in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. Also,
In FIG. 1B showing the embodiment, a foot air outlet 13 and a foot door 16 are shown in FIG.
It may be provided on the front side of the vehicle as in (b).

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a vehicle air conditioner of the present invention,
(A) is a front view, (b) is AA sectional drawing in (a).

FIG. 2 shows another example of the arrangement of each outlet in the present invention.

3A and 3B show a conventional vehicle air conditioner, wherein FIG. 3A is a front view, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 air-conditioning unit 3 air-conditioning unit case 4 inlet (air inlet opening) 5 evaporator 6 heater core 10 air mix door 11 sub air mix door 12 face outlet 13 foot outlet 14 defroster outlet 21 blower unit

Claims (4)

[Claims] An evaporator (5) and a heater core (6) are provided adjacent to each other in an air conditioning unit case (3) forming a passage of conditioned air, and the cool air from the evaporator (5) and the heater core (6) are provided. In the vehicle air conditioner for controlling the temperature of the conditioned air by adjusting the ratio of the amount of warm air from the air mix doors (10, 11), the heater core (6) is longer than the evaporator (5). An air conditioner for a vehicle, characterized in that: 2. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the heater core is longer than the evaporator in a lateral direction of the vehicle. 3. An evaporator (5) provided with an air inflow opening (4) from the blower unit (21) in one of the left and right directions of the vehicle and introducing air from the air inflow opening (4) from a lower surface. ) And an air conditioning unit (2) in which a heater core (6) is arranged on the upper surface side thereof and the evaporator (5) and the heater core (6) are arranged substantially horizontally. 2) each outlet (12,13,1)
4) is formed, and the heater core (6) is made longer in the vehicle left-right direction than the evaporator (5), and the heater core (6) is positioned with respect to the positions of the horizontally long ends of the evaporator (5). 3. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle air conditioner is protruded left and right. 4. The opening position in the vehicle left-right direction of each of the air outlets (12, 13, 14) formed in the air conditioning unit (2) is set between the air outlets (12, 13, 14). The vehicle air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the temperature is determined based on a set temperature difference.