INVERTER SYSTEM FOR VEHICLE-MOUNTED AIR CONDITIONER

• US 20090146594A1
• Filed: 09/24/2008
• Published: 06/11/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kamitani, Hiroyuki, Toyama, Koji, Hattori, Makoto, Nakano, Koji, Nakagami, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 8,004,221 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 318/400.260
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/00428 electric
• CPC Class Codes: B60H 1/3222 characterised by the compressor driving arrangements, e.g. clutches, transmissions or multiple drives B60H1/3208, B60H1/3226 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02P 6/14 Electronic commutators
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/88 Optimized components or subsystems, e.g. lighting, actively controlled glasses

Abstract

The present invention has an object to provide an inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner that prevents noise from entering a control circuit and allows high speed communication. A motor control microcomputer 24 is isolated from a gate circuit 22, and communication therebetween is performed via a photocoupler 80. This suppresses the influence of noise resulting from changes caused by changes in voltage and current that occur in a high voltage system for driving a motor 30. Also, the motor control microcomputer 24 and a communication driver 27 can be directly bus-connected without a photocoupler, thereby allowing high speed communication therebetween.

Claims

1. An inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner that controls an operation of a motor for driving a compressor that constitutes a vehicle-mounted air conditioner, comprising:

a switching element for rotationally driving said motor;

a gate circuit for driving a gate of said switching element;

a control circuit that controls said gate circuit; and

a communication interface that communicates with a host control circuit that issues a command to said control circuit from outside said inverter system,

wherein said switching element and said gate circuit are isolated from said control circuit, and isolated signal transmission means for transmitting signals while ensuring electrical isolation is provided between said control circuit and said gate circuit.

2. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said isolated signal transmission means is a photocoupler.

3. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said isolated signal transmission means is means with a built-in coil.

4. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said control circuit diagnoses a failure in said motor or said switching element, and when said control circuit determines that there is a failure, said control circuit transmits information on the determination result to said host control circuit via said communication interface.

5. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 4, wherein said inverter system further comprises a temperature detection circuit for detecting the temperature of said switching element, and

said control circuit determines that there is a failure in said motor or said switching element when the temperature of said switching element detected by said temperature detection circuit exceeds a predetermined upper limit value.

6. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 5, wherein said control circuit stores historical information that the detected temperature of said switching element exceeds the predetermined threshold or historical information that a failure occurs, and when the historical information that a failure occurs is stored at the start, said control circuit stops a processing for driving said motor.

7. The inverter system for a vehicle-mounted air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein said inverter system further comprises a voltage detection circuit that detects a voltage applied to said switching element and notifies said control circuit of the detection result, and

said control circuit monitors whether an abnormality occurs in the voltage applied to said switching element on the basis of whether a detection value of the voltage by said voltage detection circuit is within a predetermined range.