UNITARY HEAT PUMP AIR CONDITIONER HAVING A HEAT EXCHANGER WITH AN INTEGRAL ACCUMULATOR
First Claim
1. A unitary heat pump air conditioner (HPAC), comprising:
- a plate type heat exchanger assembly having a plurality of plates stacked and hermetically sealed between an upstream end plate and a downstream end plate, defining;
a condenser/chiller portion adjacent said upstream end plate, wherein said upstream end plate includes a refrigerant inlet, a hot coolant inlet, and a hot coolant outlet;
an accumulator portion adjacent said downstream end plate, wherein said downstream end plate includes a refrigerant outlet, a cold coolant inlet, and a cold coolant outlet;
an evaporator/chiller portion sandwiched between said condenser/chiller portion and said accumulator portion;
a refrigerant passageway extending through said plate type heat exchanger assembly and in hydraulic communication with said refrigerant inlet and said refrigerant outlet;
a hot coolant passageway extending through said condenser/chiller portion and in hydraulic communication with said hot coolant inlet and said hot coolant outlet; and
a cold coolant passageway extending through said evaporator/chiller portion and in hydraulic communication with said cold coolant inlet and said cold coolant outlet;
wherein said hot coolant passageway and said cold coolant passageway are in non-contact thermal communication with said refrigerant passageway.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The disclosure relates to a unitary heat pump air conditioner (Unitary HPAC) having a plate type exchanger assembly, an electrically driven compressor, and coolant pumps. The plate heat exchanger assembly includes a plurality of plates stacked and hermetically sealed between an upstream end plate and a downstream end plate. The stacked plates define a condenser/chiller portion adjacent the upstream end plate, an accumulator portion adjacent the downstream end plate, and an evaporator/chiller portion sandwiched between the condenser/chiller portion and the accumulator portion. A refrigerant passageway extends through the plate type heat exchanger assembly, a hot coolant passageway extends through the condenser/chiller portion, and a cold coolant passageway extends through the evaporator/chiller portion. The cold coolant passageway and the hot coolant passageway are in non-contact thermal communication with the refrigerant passageway.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A unitary heat pump air conditioner (HPAC), comprising:
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a plate type heat exchanger assembly having a plurality of plates stacked and hermetically sealed between an upstream end plate and a downstream end plate, defining; a condenser/chiller portion adjacent said upstream end plate, wherein said upstream end plate includes a refrigerant inlet, a hot coolant inlet, and a hot coolant outlet; an accumulator portion adjacent said downstream end plate, wherein said downstream end plate includes a refrigerant outlet, a cold coolant inlet, and a cold coolant outlet; an evaporator/chiller portion sandwiched between said condenser/chiller portion and said accumulator portion; a refrigerant passageway extending through said plate type heat exchanger assembly and in hydraulic communication with said refrigerant inlet and said refrigerant outlet; a hot coolant passageway extending through said condenser/chiller portion and in hydraulic communication with said hot coolant inlet and said hot coolant outlet; and a cold coolant passageway extending through said evaporator/chiller portion and in hydraulic communication with said cold coolant inlet and said cold coolant outlet; wherein said hot coolant passageway and said cold coolant passageway are in non-contact thermal communication with said refrigerant passageway. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A plate-type heat exchanger comprising:
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an upstream end plate having a refrigerant inlet, a hot coolant inlet, and a hot coolant outlet; a downstream end plate having a refrigerant outlet, a cold coolant inlet, and a cold coolant outlet, wherein said downstream end plate is axially spaced from said upstream end plate a condenser/chiller portion adjacent said upstream end plate, wherein said condenser/chiller portion includes a hot coolant passageway in hydraulic communication with said hot coolant inlet and said hot coolant outlet; an accumulator portion adjacent said downstream end plate having a coolant inlet header and a coolant outlet header in hydraulic communication with said cold coolant inlet and said cold coolant outlet, respectively; an evaporator/chiller portion sandwiched between said condenser/chiller portion and said accumulator portion, wherein said evaporator/chiller portion includes a cold coolant passageway in hydraulic communication with said coolant inlet and outlet headers; a refrigerant passageway extending through said plate-type heat exchanger and in hydraulic communication with said refrigerant inlet and said refrigerant outlet; wherein said hot coolant passageway and said cold coolant passageway are in non-contact thermal communication with said refrigerant passageway. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification