Non-intrusive refrigerant charge indicator
First Claim
1. A non-intrusive indicator for measuring charging levels of a refrigerant, comprising:
- a temperature sensor for measuring a temperature at an outside surface of at least one two-phase refrigerant line section, said line section having said refrigerant flowing therethrough during measurement of said temperature, and structure for determining a charging level of said refrigerant from said temperature exclusive of temperature or pressure measurements from any single-phase refrigerant line section, wherein said structure for determining a charging level includes an integrated circuit-based data processing device which converts said temperature to a pressure of said refrigerant in said line section and includes a recommended pressure range for said refrigerant stored within, said data processing device comparing said pressure of said refrigerant in said line section to said recommended pressure range.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A non-intrusive refrigerant charge level indicator includes a structure for measuring at least one temperature at an outside surface of a two-phase refrigerant line section. The measured temperature can be used to determine the refrigerant charge status of an HVAC system, and can be converted to a pressure of the refrigerant in the line section and compared to a recommended pressure range to determine whether the system is under-charged, properly charged or over-charged. A non-intrusive method for assessing the refrigerant charge level in a system containing a refrigerant fluid includes the step of measuring a temperature at least one outside surface of a two-phase region of a refrigerant containing refrigerant line, wherein the temperature measured can be converted to a refrigerant pressure within the line section.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A non-intrusive indicator for measuring charging levels of a refrigerant, comprising:
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a temperature sensor for measuring a temperature at an outside surface of at least one two-phase refrigerant line section, said line section having said refrigerant flowing therethrough during measurement of said temperature, and structure for determining a charging level of said refrigerant from said temperature exclusive of temperature or pressure measurements from any single-phase refrigerant line section, wherein said structure for determining a charging level includes an integrated circuit-based data processing device which converts said temperature to a pressure of said refrigerant in said line section and includes a recommended pressure range for said refrigerant stored within, said data processing device comparing said pressure of said refrigerant in said line section to said recommended pressure range. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A refrigerant based heating or cooling system, comprising:
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a compressor, condenser and an evaporator fluidicly connected by a refrigerant line filled with a refrigerant fluid;
a temperature sensor for measuring a temperature at an outside surface of at least one two-phase region of said refrigerant line, said line section having said refrigerant flowing therethrough during measurement of said temperature, and structure for determining a charging level of said refrigerant from said temperature exclusive of temperature or pressure measurements from any single-phase refrigerant line section, wherein said structure for determining a charging level includes an integrated circuit-based data processing device which converts said temperature to a pressure of said refrigerant in said line section and includes a recommended pressure range for said refrigerant stored within, said data processing device comparing said pressure of said refrigerant in said line section to said recommended pressure range. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification