Air conditioning apparatus

• US 7,615,106 B2
• Filed: 07/18/2006
• Issued: 11/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/22/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Yasukawa, Akihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Chiesa; Richard L
• Application Number:
  US11/995,896
• Publication Number:
  US 20090100850A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,211 Days
• Field of Search: 96/18, 96/19, 96/25, 96/26, 96/57, 96/58, 96/63, 96 95- 97, 95/2, 95/3, 95/69, 95/78, 422/5, 422/120
• US Class Current: 96/18
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 9/22 Ionisation
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2257/70 Organic compounds not provided for in groups B01D2257/00 - B01D2257/602
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2257/90 Odorous compounds not provided for in groups B01D2257/00 - B01D2257/708
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2257/91 Bacteria; Microorganisms
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 53/04 with stationary adsorbents B01D53/025 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 8/192 by electrical means, e.g. by applying electrostatic fields or high voltages
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 8/30 by ionisation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 50/20 Air quality improvement or preservation, e.g. vehicle emission control or emission reduction by using catalytic converters

Abstract

A control device repeats first air volume control and second air volume control for a predetermined number of times irrespective of a control state at that time while forcedly driving an ion generator, when a bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on. In the first air volume control, a sirocco fan generates an air flow having a predetermined air volume. In the second air volume control, the sirocco fan generates an air flow having an air volume smaller than the predetermined air volume. Therefore, a bacteria elimination effect is enhanced in an air conditioning apparatus.

Claims

1. A floor-mounted air conditioning apparatus comprising:

an ion generator to generate ions;

a flow path forming member including said ion generator, to cause air to flow;

a blower to cause the air to flow in said flow path forming member;

an ion outlet disposed in an end portion of said flow path forming member, to blow said ions along with air flowing around said ion generator disposed on one inner wall surface of said flow path forming member;

an air outlet to blow air flowing near another inner wall surface of said flow pat forming member;

a louver disposed at said air outlet to change an air flow;

a switch to switch over a driving state of said ion generator;

a bacteria elimination shower switch to cause said ion generator to run in a bacteria elimination shower mode where said ion generator generates an amount of ions larger than a normally generated amount of ions according to switching over of said switch;

a control device to control said blower; and

an inlet port to introduce air into an inside from an outside of said air conditioning apparatus, wherein

when said air conditioning apparatus is disposed near a wall such that said air outlet is brought relatively closer to said wall rather than said ion outlet while said inlet port is kept relatively away from said wall rather than said ion outlet, the air blown from said air outlet flows so as to cover, from an outside, an air flow including ions blown from said ion outlet, and

when said bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on while air is blown immediately upward or obliquely upward by said louver, said control device forcibly drives said ion generator in said bacteria elimination shower mode irrespective of a control state at that time, repeats, for a predetermined number of times, control to automatically change magnitudes of air volumes blown from said air outlet and said ion outlet within a predetermined range, and controls said blower so as to generate air flows including said ions in a dispersed manner into a plurality of positions in a room.

2. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a fiber to be able to collect a pollution substance in the air, wherein

said blower sucks the air through said filter and causes the air to flow into said flow path forming member after the pollution substance is removed by said filter, and

said control device controls said blower such tat said blower generates the air flow having an air volume smaller than a maximum air volume said blower can generate when said bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on.

3. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control device controls said blower such that said blower generates the air flow having an air volume larger than a minimum aft volume said blower can generate when said bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on.

4. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control device performs first air volume control for causing said blower to generate the air flow having a predetermined air volume and second air volume control for causing said blower to generate the air flow having an air volume smaller than said predetermined air volume, when said bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on.

5. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said control device repeats said first air volume control and said second air volume control.

6. The air conditioning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control device performs control identical to control performed immediately before said bacteria elimination shower switch is turned on, when running in said bacteria elimination shower mode is ended.