JP2014066432A - Air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air conditioner with which the risk of generation of heat stroke is reduced by using a wet bulb globe temperature as a control parameter of an automatic air conditioning operation.SOLUTION: An air conditioner 1 includes: a temperature detector 35 and a humidity detector 36; a determination unit 43 which easily estimates a wet bulb globe temperature on the basis of an indoor temperature measured by the temperature detector 35 and an indoor relative humidity measured by the humidity detector 36; and a caution signal unit 44 which issues a caution signal when the determination unit 43 determines that the wet bulb globe temperature has reached the alert level. A " monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode " for performing an automatic air conditioning operation upon the issuance of the caution signal is set in the air conditioner 1. When the "monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode "is selected, a control unit 40 of the air conditioner 1 starts the automatic air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 upon receiving a determination from the determination unit 43 that the wet bulb globe temperature has reached the alert level.

Description

  The present invention relates to an air conditioner.

The risk of developing heat stroke increases in a high-temperature and high-humidity environment. In discussing the possibility of the occurrence of heat stroke, an index called “Wet Bulb Globe Temperature” (WBGT) is used. Wet bulb black bulb temperature (WBGT) is an index that uses humidity, radiant heat, and air temperature as parameters, which have a large effect on the heat balance of the human body, and its calculation method is as follows.
Outdoor: WBGT (° C) = 0.7 × wet bulb temperature + 0.2 × black bulb temperature + 0.1 × dry bulb temperature Indoor: WBGT (° C.) = 0.7 × wet bulb temperature + 0.3 × black bulb temperature

  There have been attempts to use WBGT in public health. For example, Patent Document 1 describes a system that monitors the wet bulb black bulb temperature in a certain outdoor area and displays information that leads to heat stroke prevention.

JP 2012-37495 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide an air conditioner that can reduce the risk of developing heat stroke by setting the wet bulb black bulb temperature (WBGT) as one of the control parameters of the automatic air-conditioning operation.

  The air conditioner according to the present invention includes a temperature detector and a humidity detector, and a simple estimation of the wet bulb black bulb temperature based on the indoor temperature measured by the temperature detector and the indoor relative humidity measured by the humidity detector. And a caution signal unit that issues a caution signal when the determination unit determines that the wet-bulb black bulb temperature has reached a warning level. When the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode” is set and the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode” is selected, the control unit of the air conditioner has reached the warning level of the wet bulb black bulb temperature. The automatic air conditioning operation of the air conditioner is started in response to the determination by the determination unit.

  According to this configuration, when the wet bulb black bulb temperature reaches a warning level, the air conditioner starts the automatic air-conditioning operation, so that the risk of developing heat stroke can be reduced. By obtaining the wet bulb black bulb temperature by simple estimation, the wet bulb black bulb temperature measuring function can be easily incorporated into the air conditioner.

  In the air conditioner having the above-described configuration, it is preferable that the “monitoring mode” in which the caution signal is issued but the automatic air conditioning operation is not performed is set in addition to the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode”.

  According to this configuration, when the wet-bulb black bulb temperature reaches a warning level, the user selects whether to deal with automatic air-conditioning operation of the air conditioner or other methods such as using a fan. be able to.

  In the air conditioner having the above-described configuration, the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” is a fan operation while the warning level is low, and is a cooling operation when the warning level is raised to a high level. It is preferable.

  According to this configuration, by first performing the air blowing operation, it is possible to prevent the warning level from shifting to a high level while giving the user a comfortable feeling. And while the warning level of the wet bulb black bulb temperature is low, the power consumption can be reduced by surpassing the blowing operation.

  In the air conditioner having the above-described configuration, it is preferable that the caution signal includes a caution signal display, and the display color of the caution signal display changes as the warning level changes.

  According to this configuration, the warning level of the wet bulb black bulb temperature can be distinguished at a glance.

  In the air conditioner having the above-described configuration, it is preferable that the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” can be temporarily stopped by a user operation.

  According to this configuration, when there is a reason to temporarily stop the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” or when the user feels that the air-conditioning operation of the air conditioner is unnecessary, the user's The automatic air-conditioning operation can be temporarily stopped if desired.

  In the air conditioner configured as described above, when the user selects another air conditioning operation mode during the automatic air conditioning operation in the “supervised automatic air conditioning operation mode”, it is preferable to shift to the selected air conditioning operation mode.

  According to this configuration, even during the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode”, it is possible to shift to another air-conditioning operation mode at the intention of the user.

  In the air conditioner having the above-described configuration, when the “monitored automatic air conditioning operation mode” is selected and the transition to another air conditioning operation mode is made by the user's selection, the other air conditioning operation mode is ended by “ It is preferable to return to the “monitoring automatic air-conditioning operation mode”.

  According to this configuration, even if the user has switched to another air conditioning operation mode at the intention of the user, by returning to the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode” by ending the other air conditioning operation mode, there is a risk of developing heat stroke. The purpose of mitigation is maintained.

  According to the present invention, when the wet bulb temperature reaches a warning level, the air conditioner starts automatic air-conditioning operation, so that the user can reduce the risk of developing heat stroke without effort. Since the wet bulb black bulb temperature is obtained by simple estimation, an air conditioner having a wet bulb black bulb temperature measuring function can be easily realized.

It is a schematic block diagram of an air conditioner, and shows the state at the time of cooling operation. It is a schematic block diagram of an air conditioner, and shows the state during heating operation. It is a control block diagram of an air conditioner. It is a front view of the remote controller of an air conditioner. It is a front view of the state which opened the lid | cover of the remote controller of an air conditioner. It is a schematic block diagram of the display part of an air conditioner indoor unit. It is a table | surface for estimating WBGT simply from indoor temperature and indoor relative humidity. It is a table | surface which shows the alert level based on WBGT. It is a table | surface explaining the automatic air-conditioning driving | operation based on WBGT.

<First Embodiment>
A schematic configuration of a separate type air conditioner 1 is shown in FIG. The air conditioner 1 includes an outdoor unit 10 and an indoor unit 30.

  The outdoor unit 10 houses a compressor 12, a switching valve 13, an outdoor heat exchanger 14, an expansion valve 15, an outdoor blower 16, and the like in a housing 11 made of sheet metal parts and synthetic resin parts. doing. The compressor 12 and the expansion valve 15 play a major role in the components included in the refrigeration cycle of the air conditioner 1. The switching valve 13 is a four-way valve. As the expansion valve 15, a valve whose opening degree can be controlled is used. The outdoor blower 16 is a combination of a propeller fan and a motor.

  The outdoor unit 10 is connected to the indoor unit 30 through two refrigerant pipes 17 and 18. Liquid refrigerant flows through the refrigerant pipe 17 during the cooling operation, and a pipe that is thinner than the refrigerant pipe 18 is used. Therefore, the refrigerant pipe 17 may be referred to as “liquid pipe”, “narrow pipe”, or the like. A gas refrigerant flows through the refrigerant pipe 18 during the cooling operation, and a pipe that is thicker than the refrigerant pipe 17 is used. Therefore, the refrigerant pipe 18 may be referred to as “gas pipe”, “thick pipe”, or the like. For example, HFC R410A or R32 is used as the refrigerant.

  In the refrigerant pipe inside the outdoor unit 10, a two-way valve 19 is provided in the refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant pipe 17, and a three-way valve 20 is provided in the refrigerant pipe connected to the refrigerant pipe 18. The two-way valve 19 and the three-way valve 20 are closed when the refrigerant pipes 17 and 18 are removed from the outdoor unit 10 to prevent the refrigerant from leaking from the outdoor unit 10 to the outside. When it is necessary to recover the refrigerant from the outdoor unit 10 or the entire refrigeration cycle including the indoor unit 30, the recovery is performed through the three-way valve 20.

  The indoor unit 30 houses an indoor heat exchanger 32, an indoor blower 33, and the like in a housing 31 formed of synthetic resin parts. The indoor heat exchanger 32 is a combination of three heat exchangers 32 </ b> A, 32 </ b> B, and 32 </ b> C like a roof that covers the indoor blower 33. The indoor blower 33 is a combination of a motor and a cross flow fan.

  In order to control the operation of the air conditioner 1, it is indispensable to know the temperature of each place. For this purpose, temperature detectors are arranged in the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 30. In the outdoor unit 10, a temperature detector 21 is disposed in the outdoor heat exchanger 14, and a temperature detector 22 is disposed in the discharge pipe 12 a serving as the discharge unit of the compressor 12, and the suction serving as the suction unit of the compressor 12. A temperature detector 23 is disposed in the pipe 12 b, a temperature detector 24 is disposed in the refrigerant pipe between the expansion valve 15 and the two-way valve 19, and a temperature detector for outdoor temperature measurement at a predetermined location inside the housing 11. 25 is arranged. In the indoor unit 30, a temperature detector 34 is disposed in the indoor heat exchanger 32, and a temperature detector 35 for measuring the indoor temperature is disposed in a predetermined location inside the housing 31. Each of the temperature detectors 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 34, and 35 is formed of a thermistor.

  A humidity detector 36 for measuring the indoor relative humidity is disposed inside the housing 31 of the indoor unit 30. The indoor unit 30 is also provided with an ion generator 37 that emits positive ions and negative ions into the air blown into the room. A wind direction adjusting device 38 (see FIG. 3) capable of adjusting the wind direction in the vertical direction and the wind direction in the left and right direction is disposed in the air blowing portion of the indoor unit 30. Inside the indoor unit 30, a filter (not shown) that captures dust in the air flowing into the indoor heat exchanger 32 is disposed upstream of the indoor heat exchanger 32. A filter cleaning device 39 (see FIG. 3) for automatically cleaning it is arranged.

  The control unit 40 shown in FIG. 3 controls the overall control of the air conditioner 1. The control unit 40 performs control so that the room temperature reaches a target value set by the user.

  The control unit 40 issues operation commands to the compressor 12, the switching valve 13, the expansion valve 15, the outdoor blower 16, the indoor blower 33, the ion generator 37, the wind direction adjusting device 38, and the filter cleaning device 39. The control unit 40 receives output signals of the detected temperatures from the temperature detectors 21 to 25 and the temperature detectors 34 and 35, and receives an output signal of the relative humidity detected by the humidity detector 36. The controller 40 issues an operation command to the compressor 12, the outdoor blower 16, and the indoor blower 33 while referring to output signals from the temperature detectors 21 to 25, 34, and 35 and the humidity detector 36. A state switching command is issued to the switching valve 13 and the expansion valve 15.

  An operation unit 41, a display unit 42, a determination unit 43, and an attention signal unit 44 are attached to the control unit 40. The operation unit 41 is for a user to perform an operation, and is configured as a remote controller described later. The display unit 42 is for performing various displays and is provided in a part of the indoor unit 30. The determination unit 43 simply estimates the wet bulb black bulb temperature (hereinafter abbreviated as “WBGT”) based on the indoor temperature measured by the temperature detector 35 and the indoor relative humidity measured by the humidity detector 36, and the WBGT is a warning level. It is determined whether or not. The attention signal unit 44 issues a warning signal when the determination unit 43 determines that the WBGT has reached a warning level.

  The configuration of the remote controller 50 serving as the operation unit 41 is shown in FIGS. The remote controller 50 has an elongated casing 51 that can be held by hand. In the following description, the upper side in FIGS. 4 and 5 is “upper”, the lower side is “lower”, the left side is “left”, and the right side is Assume that “right” and direction are assigned. The configuration of the remote controller 50 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is merely an example, and does not limit the invention.

  The surface of the casing 51 is divided into a display unit 52 at the top and an operation unit 53 at the bottom. The display unit 52 is a rectangle that is vertically long and includes a display element such as a liquid crystal panel and a protective lens that covers the display element.

  Most of the area of the operation unit 53 is covered by the lid 54. The lid 54 is connected to the housing 51 by a hinge portion 55 (see FIG. 5), and opens and closes with the hinge portion 55 as a fulcrum. In the operation unit 53, various operation buttons and indicator lamps are distributed and arranged at two locations, a portion above the lid 54 and a portion covered by the lid 54. Hereinafter, what is arranged at which location will be described.

  An ion generation selection button 56 for selecting ion generation and an air conditioning start button 57 for starting the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 are provided in a portion immediately below the display unit 52 at a portion above the lid 54. Line up side by side. Below that, a stop button 58 for stopping the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 is placed.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a total of ten operation buttons are arranged in the portion covered with the lid 54. Ten operation buttons are arranged in three rows. Three operation buttons are arranged in the left column, four operation buttons are arranged in the center column, and three operation buttons are arranged in the right column.

  The four operation buttons in the center row are a menu selection button 59, an up button 60, a down button 61, and an enter button 62 in order from the top. The menu selection button 59 is used to select various menus. The various menus include an air conditioning operation mode of the air conditioner 1. The up button 60 and the down button 61 are used to select options displayed on the display unit 52 and increase / decrease a numerical value displayed on the display unit 52. The decision button 62 is used to decide selection by the ascending button 60 and the descending button 61 and increase / decrease in numerical values.

  The three operation buttons in the left column are an electricity bill confirmation button 63, a notification button 64, and a turn-off timer button 65 in order from the top. The electricity bill confirmation button 63 is used to confirm the power consumption fee of the air conditioner 1. The notification button 64 is used to display various notifications on the display unit 52. The turn-off timer button 65 is used to set a turn-off timer that automatically stops the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1.

  The three operation buttons in the right column are an air volume adjustment button 66, an up / down air direction adjustment button 67, and a left / right air direction adjustment button 68 in order from the top. The air volume adjustment button 66 is used to adjust the blown air volume of the indoor fan 33. The up / down air direction adjustment button 67 is used to adjust the up / down air direction of the air direction adjusting device 38. The left / right wind direction adjustment button 68 is used to adjust the left / right wind direction of the wind direction adjusting device 38.

  As shown in FIG. 6, various indicator lamps are arranged in a horizontal row on the display unit 42 provided in a part of the casing 31 of the indoor unit 30. They are an ion generation instruction lamp 70, an eco-automatic lamp 71, an operation lamp 72, a mirror lamp 73, a timer lamp 74, and a cleaning lamp 75 in order from the left. The configuration of the display unit 42 shown in FIG. 6 is merely an example, and does not limit the invention.

  The ion generation instruction lamp 70 is lit when the ion generator 37 is operating. The eco-automatic operation lamp 71 is lit when the air conditioner 1 is operating in the eco-automatic operation mode. The operation lamp 72 is lit when the air conditioner 1 is in the air conditioning operation. Mihari lamp 73 is lit when monitoring WBGT, and displays a caution signal in a caution signal issued by caution signal unit 44. The timer lamp 74 is lit during timer reservation. The cleaning lamp 75 is lit when the filter cleaning device 39 is in operation.

  The light sources of the lamps 70 to 75 are all light emitting diodes (LEDs). The display color of the operation lamp 72 and the mirror lamp 73 changes as will be described later.

  FIG. 1 shows a state in which the air conditioner 1 is performing a cooling operation or a defrosting operation. At this time, the compressor 12 circulates the refrigerant in a cooling mode, that is, a circulation mode in which the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 12 first enters the outdoor heat exchanger 14.

  The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 12 enters the outdoor heat exchanger 14 where heat exchange with outdoor air is performed. The refrigerant dissipates heat to the outdoor air and condenses. The refrigerant that is condensed to become liquid enters the expansion valve 15 from the outdoor heat exchanger 14 and is decompressed there. The decompressed refrigerant is sent to the indoor heat exchanger 32, expands to a low temperature and low pressure, and lowers the surface temperature of the indoor heat exchanger 32. The indoor side heat exchanger 32 whose surface temperature has been lowered absorbs heat from the room air, thereby cooling the room air. After the heat absorption, the low-temperature gaseous refrigerant returns to the compressor 12. The air flow generated by the outdoor blower 16 promotes heat radiation from the outdoor heat exchanger 14, and the air flow generated by the indoor blower 33 promotes heat absorption of the indoor heat exchanger 32.

  FIG. 2 shows a state where the air conditioner 1 is performing a heating operation. At this time, the switching valve 13 is switched to reverse the refrigerant flow during the cooling operation. The compressor 12 circulates the refrigerant in a circulation mode during heating, that is, in a circulation mode in which the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 12 first enters the indoor heat exchanger 32.

  The high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 12 enters the indoor heat exchanger 32 where heat exchange with the indoor air is performed. The refrigerant dissipates heat to the room air, and the room air is warmed. The refrigerant that has dissipated heat and has become liquid by condensing enters the expansion valve 15 from the indoor heat exchanger 32 and is decompressed there. The decompressed refrigerant is sent to the outdoor heat exchanger 14 and expands to a low temperature and low pressure, thereby lowering the surface temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger 14. The outdoor heat exchanger 14 whose surface temperature has dropped absorbs heat from outdoor air. After the heat absorption, the low-temperature gaseous refrigerant returns to the compressor 12. The air flow generated by the indoor fan 33 promotes heat dissipation from the indoor heat exchanger 32, and the air flow generated by the outdoor fan 16 promotes heat absorption by the outdoor heat exchanger 14.

  The operation lamp 72 of the display unit 42 is lit during the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1. The display color of the operation lamp 72 is changed according to the air conditioning operation mode. For example, blue is assigned during cooling operation, orange is given during heating operation, green is given during dehumidification operation, and white is assigned when only the ion generator 37 is operated or during air blowing operation. Such proper use of colors is merely an example, and does not limit the invention.

  When the ion generation selection button 56 of the remote controller 50 is pressed, the ion generator 37 starts its operation. When the ion generator 37 is operated while the air conditioner 1 is stopped, the ion generator 37 diffuses ions into the room air with its own fan. When the ion generator 37 is operated during the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1, the ion generator 37 releases ions into the air blown from the indoor blower 33.

  The ion generator 37 includes a pair of electrodes, and generates ions by applying a high voltage of an AC waveform or an impulse waveform between the electrodes to cause corona discharge.

A positive voltage is applied to one of the electrodes, and water molecules in the air are ionized by corona discharge to generate hydrogen ions. This hydrogen ion is clustered with water molecules in the air by solvation energy. As a result, positive ions of air ions composed of H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m (m is 0 or an arbitrary natural number) are released.

A negative voltage is applied to the other electrode, and oxygen molecules or water molecules in the air are ionized by corona discharge to generate oxygen ions. This oxygen ion is clustered with water molecules in the air by solvation energy. Thereby, negative ions of air ions composed of O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n (n is an arbitrary natural number) are released.

H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m and O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n aggregate on the surface of airborne bacteria and odor components and surround them. Then, as shown in the following formulas (1) to (3), the active species [.OH] (hydroxyl radical) and H ₂ O ₂ (hydrogen peroxide) are aggregated on the surface of the microorganism or the like by collision. To destroy airborne bacteria and odor components. Here, m ′ and n ′ are arbitrary natural numbers. Therefore, by spraying positive ions and negative ions, indoor sterilization and odor removal can be performed.

H ⁺ (H ₂ O) m + O ₂ ⁻ (H ₂ O) n → OH + 1 / 2O ₂ + (m + n) H ₂ O (1)
_{^{H + (H 2 O) m}} + H + (H 2 O) m '+ O 2 - (H 2 O) n + O 2 - (H 2 O) n'
→ 2 OH + O ₂ + (m + m ′ + n + n ′) H ₂ O (2)
_{^{H + (H 2 O) m}} + H + (H 2 O) m '+ O 2 - (H 2 O) n + O 2 - (H 2 O) n'
→ H ₂ O ₂ + O ₂ + (m + m ′ + n + n ′) H ₂ O (3)

  When the menu selection button 59 of the remote controller 50 is pressed while the operation of the air conditioner 1 is stopped, and the “filter cleaning” is selected by operating the ascending button 60, the descending button 61, and the decision button 62, the filter cleaning device 39 starts the operation and cleans a filter (not shown) disposed on the upstream side of the indoor heat exchanger 32. Thereby, the heat exchange capability of the indoor unit 30 can be recovered.

  The air conditioner 1 is set with a “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode”. When “supervised automatic air-conditioning operation mode” is selected, automatic air-conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 is performed while monitoring the WBGT in the room.

  The indoor WBGT is obtained based on the indoor temperature measured by the temperature detector 35 and the indoor relative humidity measured by the humidity detector 36. The determination unit 43 simply estimates the WBGT by applying the room temperature and the room relative humidity to the table of FIG.

  In the table of FIG. 7, the temperature in increments of 1 ° C. from 21 ° C. to 40 ° C. constitutes a column, and the relative humidity in increments of 5% from 20% to 100% constitutes a row. The letters “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D” in the matrix represent the degree of WBGT, and their meanings are as shown in the table of FIG.

  When the value of WBGT is less than 25 ° C., the level is A. This is the position of “caution”. When the value of WBGT is 25 ° C. or higher and 28 ° C., the level B is set. This is the position of “warning”. When the value of WBGT is 28 ° C. or higher and lower than 31 ° C., the level is C. This is the position of “strict alert”. When the value of WBGT is 31 ° C. or higher, the level is D. This is the position of “danger”. Level B or higher is a warning level that requires a warning for the onset of heat stroke. Level D is the highest alert level.

  Based on the determination of WBGT made by the determination unit 43, the control unit 40 performs operation control of the automatic air conditioning operation as shown in the table of FIG. While the WBGT is level A (attention), the air conditioner 1 is stopped. When WBGT reaches level B (warning), the air conditioner 1 starts the air blowing operation. “Blower operation” is an air conditioning operation mode in which only the indoor fan 33 is driven without driving the compressor 12. In this way, the WBGT is changed from level B (alert) to level C (strict alert) and further to level D (danger) while giving the user a feeling of comfort by performing the air blowing operation first. It is possible to suppress migration.

  When the WBGT has advanced to level C (strict warning) or level D (danger) despite the air blowing operation, the air conditioner 1 starts the cooling operation. The set temperature of the cooling operation is preferably set to 28 ° C., for example.

  As described above, when the WBGT reaches the warning level, the air conditioner 1 starts the automatic air-conditioning operation, so that the risk of developing heat stroke can be reduced. Since WBGT is obtained by simple estimation, the WBGT measurement function can be easily incorporated into the air conditioner 1.

  As shown in FIG. 9, when the WBGT is lowered from level C (strict warning) or level D (danger) to level B (warning), the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 is switched from the cooling operation to the air blowing operation. Thus, when the warning level of WBGT is low, the power consumption can be reduced by surpassing with the air blowing operation.

  When WBGT rises again from level B (alert) to level C (strict alert) or level D (danger), the air-conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 is switched from the blowing operation to the cooling operation. When the level B (warning) is lowered to level A (caution), the air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 is stopped.

  The attention signal unit 44 issues an attention signal as shown in the table of FIG. 9 based on the determination of WBGT made by the determination unit 43. As the caution signal, a caution signal displayed by the beam lamp 73 only on the display unit 42 and a caution sound emitted from a sounding body (not shown) are used.

  The display color of the Mihari lamp 73 is green when WBGT is level A (caution), orange when level B (warning), and red when level C (serious warning) or level D (danger). It is said. By changing the display color in this way, the warning level of WBGT can be distinguished at a glance. Such proper use of colors is merely an example, and does not limit the invention.

  When the value of WBGT reaches from 25 ° C. to 25 ° C., a caution sound sounds and alerts the user. When the value of WBGT reaches less than 28 ° C to 28 ° C, a caution sound sounds and alerts the user. When the value of WBGT falls from 25 ° C. or more to less than 25 ° C. and the air conditioner 1 stops the air-conditioning operation, a caution sound sounds. By alerting the user with sound as described above, the attention signal can be recognized even if the user keeps an eye on the display unit 42.

  The cautionary sound between the level B and the level C / D sounds only once when the WBGT value reaches from 25 ° C to 25 ° C and once when it reaches from 28 ° C to 28 ° C. Once the temperature reaches 28 ° C., the caution sound does not sound when switching from the cooling operation to the air blowing operation or when switching from the air blowing operation to the air cooling operation again. This is a consideration for making the operating environment of the air conditioner 1 as quiet as possible.

  The above-described alert sound setting is merely an example, and does not limit the invention.

  In this embodiment, the display unit 42 is provided on a part of the casing 31 of the indoor unit 30, but the display unit 42 may be provided on the remote controller 50. In this way, it is not necessary to look up at the indoor unit 30 at a high position to view the display unit 42, so that it becomes easier to notice the attention signal display by the monitor lamp 73.

Second Embodiment
In the air conditioner 1 of the second embodiment, the “monitoring mode” is set in addition to the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode”. In the “monitor mode”, only the warning signal is issued without the automatic air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1.

  The operation of the attention signal unit 44 in the “monitoring mode” is as shown in the table of FIG. That is, the operation is the same as that in the “supervised automatic air-conditioning operation mode”. However, the air conditioner 1 stops the air-conditioning operation at this time.

  In the air conditioner 1 of the second embodiment, when the WBGT reaches a warning level, the user determines whether to deal with the automatic air conditioning operation of the air conditioner 1 or to deal with other methods such as using a fan. Can be selected.

<Third Embodiment>
The air conditioner 1 of the third embodiment selects the “monitored automatic air conditioning operation mode”, and when the automatic air conditioning operation based on it is performed, the automatic air conditioning operation can be temporarily stopped by the user's operation. It has become.

  The automatic air-conditioning operation is temporarily stopped by performing a predetermined operation on the button of the remote controller 50 during the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode”. It is recommended to provide a dedicated button for pause. During the temporary stop, the beam lamp 73 remains lit. By performing a predetermined operation on the button of the remote controller 50 once again during the pause, the automatic air-conditioning operation is restarted by, for example, pressing the pause-dedicated button again.

  In the air conditioner 1 of the third embodiment, when the reason for temporarily stopping the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” occurs or when the user feels that the operation of the air conditioner 1 is unnecessary. In some cases, the automatic air-conditioning operation can be temporarily stopped at the intention of the user. When it becomes necessary to completely stop the air conditioner 1 due to a long absence from the front of the air conditioner 1, the air conditioner 1 is stopped by the stop button 58 of the remote controller 50.

<Fourth embodiment>
The air conditioner 1 according to the fourth embodiment shifts to the selected air conditioning operation mode when the user selects another air conditioning operation mode during the automatic air conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air conditioning operation mode”. ing. For this reason, even during the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitoring automatic air-conditioning operation mode”, it is possible to shift to another air-conditioning operation mode at the intention of the user.

  As described above, when the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” is selected, if the user selects another air-conditioning operation mode, the other air-conditioning operation mode is terminated to terminate the “monitoring automatic air-conditioning operation mode”. To return. For this reason, the objective of reducing the risk of developing heat stroke is continuously maintained. Note that the button for ending the other air-conditioning operation mode and returning to the “monitoring automatic air-conditioning operation mode” may be the stop button 58 of the remote controller 50 or another button.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

  The present invention is widely applicable to air conditioners.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air conditioner 10 Outdoor unit 12 Compressor 14 Outdoor heat exchanger 15 Expansion valve 16 Outdoor fan 30 Indoor unit 32 Indoor heat exchanger 33 Indoor fan 35 Temperature detector 36 Humidity detector 40 Control part 43 Determination part 44 Caution signal section

Claims (5)

A temperature detector and a humidity detector;
A determination unit that simply estimates the wet bulb black bulb temperature based on the indoor temperature measured by the temperature detector and the indoor relative humidity measured by the humidity detector;
When the determination unit determines that the wet bulb temperature has reached a warning level, a caution signal unit that issues a caution signal,
The air conditioner is set with a “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode” for performing automatic air conditioning operation together with the issuing of the caution signal. When the “monitoring automatic air conditioning operation mode” is selected, the control of the air conditioner is performed. The air conditioner is configured to start automatic air conditioning operation of the air conditioner in response to the determination by the determination unit that the wet bulb black bulb temperature has reached a warning level.   2. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein, in addition to the “monitoring automatic air-conditioning operation mode”, a “monitoring mode” is set in which the caution signal is issued but the automatic air-conditioning operation is not performed. .   2. The automatic air-conditioning operation in the “supervised automatic air-conditioning operation mode” is a fan operation while the warning level is low, and is a cooling operation when the warning level is raised to a high level. Or the air conditioner of 2.   The air conditioner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the caution signal includes a caution signal display, and the display color of the caution signal display changes with a change in the warning level.   5. The air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the automatic air-conditioning operation in the “monitored automatic air-conditioning operation mode” can be temporarily stopped by a user's operation.

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