Air conditioner

• US 20040050077A1
• Filed: 07/15/2003
• Published: 03/18/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Daikin Industries Ltd
• Original Assignee: Daikin Industries Ltd
• Inventors: Akiyama, Ryuuji, Shigemori, Kazuhisa, Kasai, Masaya, Shiochi, Sumio, Yabu, Tomohiro
• Application Number:
  US10/466,268
• Publication Number:
  US 20040050077A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 62/186
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 1/0011 characterised by air outlets
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 1/0047 mounted in the ceiling or at the ceiling
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/46 Improving electric energy efficiency or saving
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/79 for controlling the direction of the supplied air
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 13/06 Outlets for directing or distributing air into rooms or spaces, e.g. ceiling air diffuser
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2120/10 Occupancy

Abstract

An indoor unit (Z₁) has a casing (1) which is embedded or suspended in/from a ceiling (50), and an indoor panel (2) which is provided on a lower side of the casing (1) and installed in an indoor exposed state. The indoor panel (2) is provided with an air inlet (3), a plurality of air outlets (4) which surround the air inlet (3) in a rectangular shape and have a rectangular shape. An infrared sensor (15) is provided on an exposed portion of the indoor panel (2). The indoor unit (Z₁) further has an airflow changing unit (52) for changing characteristics of airflow blown out from each of the air outlets (4), and a control unit (53) for controlling the airflow changing unit (52) based on output information of the infrared sensor (15).

Claims

1. An air conditioner comprising:

a casing (1) embedded or suspended in/from a ceiling (50);

an indoor panel (2) provided on a lower side of said casing (1), said indoor panel (2) being provided with an air inlet (3) and a plurality of air outlets (4), said air outlets (4) surrounding a rectangular periphery of said air inlet (3) and each having a rectangular shape, said indoor panel (2) being installed in an indoor exposed state;

an infrared sensor (15) provided on an exposed portion of said indoor panel (2);

an airflow changing unit (52) for changing characteristics of an airflow blown out from each or said air outlet (4); and

a control unit (53) for controlling said airflow changing unit (52) based on output information from said infrared sensor (15).

2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said infrared sensor (15) is provided between said air outlets (4, 4).

3. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said infrared sensor (15) is provided on a peripheral edge of said air outlet (4).

4. The air conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising a scanning mechanism (20) for scanning said infrared sensor (15).

5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of said infrared sensors (15) are provided correspondingly to said air outlets (4, 4, . . . ),

said infrared sensors (15) are non-scanning type infrared sensors for detecting their respective constant ranges as an object to be detected.

6. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16) are provided in vicinities of said air outlets (4) in an inside portion of said air inlet (3) on the indoor panel (12) or in an inside portion of said air inlet (3) in said casing (1).

7. The air conditioner according to claim 6, further comprising:

a scanning mechanism (20) for scanning said infrared sensor (15);

a judging unit (18) for calculating a heat load based on output information from said temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16) and judging whether the heat load is not less than a predetermined load for each of said temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16); and

a stopping unit (18) for, when the judgment is made that the heat load is not less than the predetermined load in a not less than predetermined proportion of said temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16), stopping an operation of said scanning mechanism (20).

8. The air conditioner according to claim 6, further comprising a correcting unit (18) for anticipating an object temperature in a blowout direction of an airflow from said air outlets (4) based on the output information from said temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16) and correcting a detected temperature of said infrared sensor (15) based on the anticipated object temperature.

9. The air conditioner according to claim 6, wherein said infrared sensor (15) detects a position of a person in a room and said temperature sensors or temperature/humidity sensors (16) detect a temperature of a sucked air from the room.

10. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said airflow changing units (52) includes:

an air capacity distributing mechanism (10) for changing a distributing ratio of a blowout air capacity between said air outlets (4, 4, . . . );

first flaps (12) for changing a blowout direction of an airflow in a direction of a long side of each of said outlets (4);

a second flap (13) for changing a blowout direction of an airflow in a direction of a short side of said each air outlet (4); and

driving mechanisms (29, 30, 31) for driving said air capacity distributing mechanism (10), said first flaps (12) and said second flap (13) independently at said each air outlet (4).

11. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said airflow changing unit (52) includes:

an air capacity distributing mechanism (10) for changing a distributing ratio of a blowout air capacity between said air outlets (4, 4, . . . );

first flaps (12) for changing a blowout direction of an airflow in a direction of a long side of said each air outlet (4);

a second flap (13) for changing a blowout direction of an airflow in a direction of a short side of said each air outlet (4);

driving mechanisms (29, 30) for driving said air capacity distributing mechanism (10) and said first flaps (12) independently at said each air outlet (4); and

a driving mechanism (31) for driving said second flaps (13, 13, . . . ) of said air outlets (4, 4, . . . ) in an interlocking manner.

12. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of blowout passages (14) each continued to said each air outlet (4) are provided in said casing (1),

said airflow changing unit (52) includes;

an air capacity distributing mechanism (10) provided on said each blowout passage (14) for changing a distributing ratio of a blowout air capacity between said air outlets (4, 4, . . . );

first flaps (12) provided on said each blowout passage (14) for changing a blowout direction of an airflow in a direction of a long side of said each air outlet (4);

a driving mechanism (29) provided on one end of the direction of the long side of said each air outlet (4) in said each blowout passage (14), said driving mechanism (29) for driving said each air capacity distributing mechanism (10); and

a driving mechanism (30) provided on the other end of the direction of the long side of said each air outlet (4) in said blowout passage (14), said driving mechanism (30) for driving said each first flap (12).

13. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of blowout passages (14) each continued to said each air outlet (4) are provided in said casing (1),

said airflow changing unit (52) is provided in said each blowout passage (14), and has an air capacity distributing mechanism (10) for increasing/decreasing an opening area of said each blowout passage (14) so as to change a distributing ratio of a blowout air capacity between said air outlets (4, 4, . . . ),

said air capacity distributing mechanism (10) includes;

a pair of shutters (11, 11) provided on both sides of a direction of a short side of said each air outlet (4) in said each blowout passage (14), said shutters (11, 11) being freely tilted simultaneously with a movement to an upper stream side of an airflow direction of said blowout passage (14); and

a driving mechanism (29) for moving said shutters (11, 11) to both ends of said blowout passage (14) at the time of an operation for enlarging the opening area of said blowout passage (14), and moving said shutters (11, 11) to the upper stream side of said blowout passage (14) at the time of an operation for reducing the opening area of said blowout passage (14).