KR100839596B1 - Multi airconditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

A multi-type air conditioner system is provided to remove the unstability in the operation of the air conditioner due to the non-sufficient condensation of refrigerant by increasing the amount of heat emitted from refrigerant used in the heating operation when the heating operation is carried out the same load with cooling operation. A multi-type air conditioner system includes an outdoor unit(100) having a compressor(110), a 4-way valve(120), an outdoor heat exchanger(130), and an outdoor expansion valve(140), a plurality of indoor units(200) having an indoor heat exchanger(210) and an indoor expansion valve(220) respectively, and a cooling/heating conversion unit(300) for converting refrigerant introducing direction towards the indoor units according to operation mode of the indoor units. The cooling/heating conversion unit is connected to the outdoor unit by first to third pipes(311-313) and the indoor units by gas pipes(213) and liquid pipes(214). The cooling/heating conversion unit includes a plurality of refrigerant heat exchangers(230), which carry out heat exchange between refrigerant branched before being introduced into the heat exchanger from one of the indoor units in a cooling mode and refrigerant branched before being introduced into the heat exchanger from another one in a heating mode.

Description

Multi Air Conditioner

1 is a view showing a conventional multi-chamber air conditioner.

2 shows a multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention.

3 is a view showing a refrigerant flow when the operating capacity for the cooling operation is larger than the operating capacity for the heating operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention.

4 is a view showing a refrigerant flow when the operating capacity for the heating operation is larger than the operating capacity for the cooling operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention.

5 is a view showing a refrigerant flow when the operating capacity for the cooling operation and the operating capacity for the heating operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention is equal.

<Description of Signs of Major Parts of Drawings>

100: outdoor unit 104: branch pipe

110: compressor 120: four-way valve

130: outdoor heat exchanger 140: outdoor expansion valve

200: indoor unit 210: indoor heat exchanger

220: expansion valve 230: refrigerant heat exchanger

300: refrigerant conversion unit

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2006-0028629 (Patent Document 1)

The present invention relates to a multi-chamber air conditioner having one outdoor unit and a plurality of indoor units and capable of simultaneously operating an indoor space by cooling or heating through a plurality of indoor units. More specifically, the present invention relates to a multi-chamber air conditioner capable of increasing stability in operating an air conditioner when the cooling operation and the heating operation are performed at equal operating capacities among a plurality of indoor units.

In general, a multi-chamber air conditioner refers to an air conditioner capable of individually cooling or heating through each indoor unit by providing a plurality of indoor units as one module for one outdoor unit.

FIG. 1 illustrates one module of a multi-chamber air conditioner (hereinafter, referred to as 'prior art') disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2006-0028629. As shown in FIG. 1, the multi-chamber air conditioner switches the refrigerant flow direction to one outdoor unit 32, a plurality of indoor units 33 (five in FIG. 1), and a plurality of indoor units 33, respectively. It is provided with a heating and cooling conversion unit (34). The outdoor unit 32 and the air conditioning unit 34 are connected to three pipes, such as the first pipe 36, the third pipe 37, and the third pipe 38, and are respectively connected to the air conditioning switch 34. The indoor units of the first and second pipes 36 and 37 are joined to or connected to the pipe and the third pipe 38 is joined or branched.

The outdoor unit 32 includes a compressor 41, a four-way valve 42, an outdoor heat exchanger 43, an outdoor expansion valve 44, a receiver tank 45, and an accumulator 46. Each indoor unit 33 also includes an indoor expansion valve 51 and an indoor heat exchanger 52.

The prior art having such a configuration has a four-way valve on the outdoor unit 32 side when operating with a balanced heating and cooling load, such as when the cooling operation and the heating operation are performed at equal operating capacity among the plurality of indoor units 33. The first and fourth ports 42a and 42d of 42 are connected, and the second and third ports 42b and 42c are connected to each other, and the closing valve 50a of the bypass pipe 50 is closed. The closing valve 56 is closed on the heating-side indoor unit 33 (two indoor units located at the bottom in FIG. 1), and the closing valve 55 is closed on the cooling-side indoor unit 33 (two indoor units located at the top in FIG. 1). .

In this case, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 41 is first heated by the first pipe 36 and the air conditioning unit 34 through the first and fourth ports 42a and 42d of the four-way valve 42. It is supplied to the indoor unit 33 of the lower part to be condensed through heat exchange in the indoor heat exchanger 52 to heat the room, and then the air conditioner 33 performs the cooling operation through the third pipe 38 in the air conditioning unit 34. ) Is cooled to the room by evaporation through heat exchange in the indoor heat exchanger (52). Thereafter, the refrigerant is circulated to the suction side of the compressor 41 through the second pipe 37 and the accumulator 46.

In this case, the cooling and heating switching unit 34 through the bypass pipe 50, the outdoor heat exchanger 43, the outdoor expansion valve 44, and the receiver tank 45 from the second port 42b of the four-way valve 42. Most of the refrigerant does not flow between the third pipe 38 portion up to the low pressure gas pipe 37 from the third port 42c. Therefore, the outdoor heat exchanger 43 is not actually used.

However, when the cooling operation and the heating operation are operated at the same operating capacity in one multi-chamber air conditioner module as described above, there is an advantage that the outdoor heat exchanger 43 is not used, but the indoor unit 33 performing the heating operation The indoor heat exchanger 52 alone cannot sufficiently condense the refrigerant. Specifically, in one multi-chamber air conditioner module, since the outdoor heat exchanger 43 must have a capacity for cooling all of the plurality of indoor units 33, the outdoor heat exchanger 43 is generally designed to be larger than the total operating capacity of the plurality of indoor units 33. do. However, when the cooling operation and the heating operation are operated at the same operating capacity as described above, when the refrigerant is condensed only by the indoor heat exchanger 52 of the indoor unit 33 performing the heating operation, the refrigerant temperature and pressure are not sufficiently condensed. It becomes higher than using this outdoor heat exchanger 43.

The increase in temperature and pressure of the refrigerant increases the temperature and pressure of the refrigerant flowing into the compressor 41 after passing through the indoor unit 33 performing the cooling operation, and increases the outlet temperature and pressure of the compressor 41. Let's go. If the discharge temperature of the compressor 41 rises, the compressor 41 may be damaged. As a result, the refrigerant flow may be reduced as the refrigerant in the gas phase flows into the inlet of the expansion device serving as a condenser. Non-uniformity causes problems in the stability of the air conditioner operation.

The present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art, by allowing the heat exchange between the refrigerant between a pair of indoor units of the plurality of indoor units provided in the multi-chamber air conditioner, heating operation and cooling operation to equal operating capacity It is an object of the present invention to provide a multi-chamber air conditioner that can be operated more stably by increasing the amount of heat emitted from the refrigerant to be heated to allow the refrigerant to be sufficiently condensed.

In order to achieve this object, the present invention relates to a multi-chamber air conditioner, comprising: an outdoor unit having a compressor, a four-way valve, an outdoor heat exchanger, and an outdoor expansion valve; A plurality of indoor units each having an indoor heat exchanger and an indoor expansion valve; And a cooling / heating switching unit for changing the direction of the refrigerant flowing into each indoor unit according to the operation mode of each indoor unit, wherein the cooling / heating switching unit is connected to the outdoor unit through first, second and third pipes, Some refrigerant, which is connected to the respective indoor units through a gas pipe and a liquid pipe, branched before being introduced into the indoor heat exchanger from one indoor unit performing heating operation among the plurality of indoor units, flows into the indoor heat exchanger from another indoor unit performing cooling operation. It is characterized in that it comprises a plurality of refrigerant heat exchanger for heat exchange with some of the previously branched refrigerant.

Hereinafter, a multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 2 is a view showing a multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention.

Referring to Figure 2, the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention largely one indoor unit 100, a plurality of indoor units (200, four indoor units in the present embodiment) and the indoor unit according to the cooling and heating operation form of the indoor unit 200 It includes a cooling and heating conversion unit 300 for switching the direction of the refrigerant flowing to (200).

The outdoor unit 100 includes a compressor 110 for compressing a refrigerant, a four-way valve 120 for changing a direction of the refrigerant, an outdoor heat exchanger 130 for condensing the refrigerant by heat exchange with outside air, and the outdoor unit. An outdoor expansion valve 140 for expanding the refrigerant passing through the heat exchanger 130, an accumulator 150 installed at the inlet side of the compressor 110, and a receiver tank installed at the outlet side of the outdoor expansion valve 140. 105.

The outdoor unit 100 is connected to the air conditioning unit 300 by the first, second and third pipes (311, 312, 313). The first pipe 311 is connected to the four-way valve 120, the second pipe 312 is connected to the outdoor expansion valve 140 through the receiver tank 105, the third pipe ( 313 is connected to the pipe connecting the four-way valve 120 and the accumulator 150.

In addition, the outdoor unit 100 includes a branch pipe 104 branched from a pipe connecting the four-way valve 120 and the outdoor heat exchanger 130 to communicate with the first pipe 311, wherein the branch pipe ( 104 is provided with an on-off valve 103 for opening and closing the branch pipe 104.

In addition, the check valve 101 positioned between the four-way valve 120 and the first pipe 311 in the outdoor unit 100 and the check valve 106 branched from the outdoor expansion valve 140 are provided. And the check valve 102 located in the branch pipe 104 is for preventing the refrigerant flowing in the respective pipes from flowing back.

On the other hand, the plurality of indoor units (200: 200a, 200b, 200c, 200d) each includes an indoor heat exchanger 210 and the indoor expansion valve 220. In addition, each of the plurality of indoor units 200 is connected through a cooling and heating conversion unit 300, a gas pipe 213 and a liquid pipe 214.

The air conditioning unit 300 is a plurality of on-off valve 301 for selectively communicating the first pipe 311 with the gas pipe 213 of each indoor unit (200a, 200b, 200c, 200d), and the third pipe A plurality of opening / closing valves 302 for selectively communicating 313 with the gas pipes 213 of the respective indoor units 200a, 200b, 200c, and 200d are provided. In addition, the air conditioning unit 300 communicates the second pipe 312 with the liquid pipe 214 of each indoor unit (200a, 200b, 200c, 200d).

The multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention includes a plurality of refrigerant inter-heat exchangers 230 in which the refrigerant of one indoor unit of the plurality of indoor units 200 and the refrigerant of another indoor unit exchange heat. Specifically, the refrigerant of the indoor unit 200a illustrated in FIG. 2 may include a refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 that exchanges heat with each refrigerant of the other indoor units 200b, 200c, and 200d, and each of the other indoor units 200b. , 200c and 200d may also include a refrigerant heat exchanger 230 that exchanges heat with refrigerant of other indoor units. Therefore, as in this embodiment, four indoor units may be provided with a total of six refrigerant heat exchangers.

For convenience of description, in FIG. 2, among the plurality of coolant heat exchangers, a coolant heat exchanger 230 (refrigerant heat exchanger located at an upper part in FIG. 2) and an indoor unit (in which the coolant of the indoor unit 200a and the indoor unit 200c heat exchange) Only the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 (refrigerant inter-heat exchanger located in the lower part in FIG. 2) in which the refrigerant of 200b) and the indoor unit 200d exchanges will be described.

In the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 in which the indoor unit 200a and the refrigerant of the indoor unit 200c exchange heat, they are branched from the gas pipe 213 connected to the indoor unit 200a to the rear of the indoor heat exchanger 210 of the indoor unit 200a. The second heat exchange pipe 232 branched from the first heat exchange pipe 231 connected to the gas pipe 213 connected to the indoor unit 200c and connected to the rear of the indoor heat exchanger 210 of the indoor unit 200c is a refrigerant. It is installed to pass through the interior of the inter-heat exchanger (230). By such a configuration, heat exchange is performed between the refrigerant passing through the first heat exchange tube 231 and the refrigerant passing through the second heat exchange tube 232 in the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230.

Similarly, in the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 in which the refrigerant of the indoor unit 200b and the indoor unit 200d are heat-exchanged, the indoor heat exchanger 210 of the indoor unit 200b is branched from the gas pipe 213 connected to the indoor unit 200b. The second heat exchange tube 232 branched from the first heat exchange tube 231 connected to the rear of the gas pipe 213 connected to the indoor unit 200d and connected to the rear of the indoor heat exchanger 210 of the indoor unit 200c. ) Is installed to pass through the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger (230).

Meanwhile, each of the first and second heat exchange tubes 231 and 232 is provided with an on / off valve 303 and an on / off valve 304 for selectively opening and closing the refrigerant flowing into the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230.

The action of the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention having such a configuration is as follows. 3 is a view showing the refrigerant flow when the operating capacity for the cooling operation is larger than the operating capacity for the heating operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention, Figure 4 is a multi-room air conditioner according to the present invention It is a view showing the refrigerant flow when the operating capacity for the heating operation is larger than the operating capacity for the cooling operation, Figure 5 is a driving capacity for the cooling operation and operating capacity for the heating operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention It is a figure which shows the refrigerant flow in this case.

<Cooling subject operation>

First, the case where the operation capacity for the cooling operation is larger than the operation capacity for the heating operation, that is, the case where the 'cooling subject operation' is performed will be described. When performing the cooling main body operation, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the indoor unit 200d performs a heating operation, and the remaining indoor units 200a, 200b, 200c perform a cooling operation.

In this case, the four-way valve 120 is connected to the first port (120a) and the fourth port (120d), the second port (120b) and the third port (120c) is connected, and the on-off valve 103 Open to allow the refrigerant to flow into the branch pipe (104). In the air conditioning unit 300, the on / off valves 305, 306 and 307 are kept open, and the indoor unit 200d allows refrigerant to flow through the on / off valve 301, and the indoor units 200a, The refrigerant flows through the on / off valve 302 to 200b and 200c. In addition, the on / off valves 303 and 304 maintain a closed state so that heat exchange between the refrigerants does not occur in the refrigerant exchanger heat exchanger 230.

By this configuration, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 110 passes through the first port 120a and the fourth port 120d of the four-way valve 120 and partially opens / closes the valve 103 and the first pipe 311. While passing through the air-conditioning switching unit 300, the air-conditioning switching unit 300 passes through the indoor exchanger 210 of the indoor unit 200d via the on-off valve 305 and the on-off valve 301 of the indoor unit 200d. It condenses while heating and expands while passing through the indoor expansion valve (220). In addition, the remaining refrigerant is condensed and expanded while passing through the outdoor heat exchanger 130 and the outdoor expansion valve 140, and flows into the indoor units 200a, 200b, and 200c through the second pipe 312 and the opening / closing valve 306. do. Thereafter, each indoor heat exchanger 210 evaporates by cooling through heat exchange, and each on / off valve 302 positioned in front of the indoor units 200a, 200b, 200c is introduced into the third pipe 313. . Meanwhile, the refrigerant heated in the indoor unit 200d is mixed with the refrigerant flowing into the second pipe 312 and introduced into the indoor units 200a, 200b, and 200c. The refrigerant introduced into the third pipe 313 flows back into the compressor 110 through the accumulator 150.

<Heating subject operation>

Next, the case where the operation capacity for the cooling operation is smaller than the operation capacity for the heating operation, that is, the case where the heating subject operation is performed will be described. In the case of performing the heating main operation, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, the indoor unit 200a performs the cooling operation, and the remaining indoor units 200b, 200c, 200d perform the heating operation.

In this case, the four-way valve 120 is connected to the first port 120a and the second port 120b, the third port 120c and the fourth port 120d are connected, and the on / off valve 103 is also connected. Closed so that the refrigerant does not flow through the branch pipe (104). In the air conditioning unit 300, the on / off valves 305, 306, 307 are kept open, and the indoor unit 200a allows the refrigerant to flow out through the on / off valve 302, and the indoor units 200b, 200c and 200d allow the refrigerant to flow out through the on / off valve 301. The on-off valves 303 and 304 communicating with the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 are kept closed. In addition, the on-off valve 103 installed in the branch pipe 104 is maintained in a closed state.

The refrigerant compressed by the compressor 110 by this configuration flows into the first pipe 311 through the first port 120a and the second port 120b of the four-way valve 120 and the on / off valve 305. do. Since the refrigerant is branched in the air conditioning unit 300, passing through the opening and closing valve 301 located in front of the indoor unit (200b, 200c, 200d) by heating by heat exchange in each indoor heat exchanger (210) Condensation. Since the refrigerant is expanded while passing through each of the indoor expansion valve 220, and through each liquid pipe 214, a part of the refrigerant is passed through the second pipe 312 to the outdoor heat exchanger 130 to exchange heat with the outside air to evaporate Then, the four-way port 120d and the third port 120c of the four-way port 120c passes through the accumulator 150. In addition, the remaining refrigerant is introduced into the indoor unit 200a through the liquid pipe 214, and then evaporated by cooling by heat exchange in the indoor heat exchanger 210, and then, through the gas pipe 213 and the opening / closing valve 302, a third refrigerant. The pipe 313 passes through the accumulator 150. The refrigerant introduced into the accumulator 150 flows back into the compressor 110.

<Simultaneous cooling and heating (heat recovery) operation>

Next, 'simultaneous cooling and heating (heat transfer recovery) operation', in which the operating capacity for the cooling operation and the operating capacity for the heating operation in the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention are equal, will be described. In this case, heat exchange with the outside air is not performed in the outdoor heat exchanger 130, and heat exchange is performed in the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, when the cooling operation is performed in the indoor unit 200a and the indoor unit 200b, and the heating operation is performed in the indoor unit 200c and the indoor unit 200d, the cooling operation capacity and the heating operation capacity become the same. The first port 120a and the second port 120b of the four-way valve 120 are connected to each other, and the shutoff valve 103 is closed to prevent the refrigerant from flowing through the branch pipe 104. In addition, the opening / closing valve 306 provided in the second pipe 312 is closed, and the opening / closing valves 305 and 307 provided in the first and third pipes 311 and 313 are opened. In addition, in the indoor units 200a and 200b for cooling, the refrigerant flows in through the liquid pipe 214 and the refrigerant flowing out through the gas pipe 213 flows through the on / off valve 302 to the third pipe 313, and the heating is performed. In the indoor units (200c, 200d) to perform the refrigerant is introduced into the gas pipe 213 through the on-off valve 301 and flows out through the liquid pipe 214. In addition, the on / off valves 303 and 304 are opened so that some of the refrigerant introduced into the indoor unit is branched to pass through the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230.

By this configuration, the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 110 flows into the first pipe 311 through the first and second ports 120a and 120b and does not flow to the outdoor heat exchanger 130. The refrigerant passing through the first pipe 311 flows into the gas pipe 213 of the indoor units 200c and 200d through the opening / closing valve 301 of the indoor units 200c and 200d which perform the heating operation. Thereafter, some of the refrigerant passes through the open / close valve 304 and passes through the second heat exchange tube 232 to the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230, and the remaining refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 210. The refrigerant is condensed by heat exchange in the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger (230) and the indoor heat exchanger (210) and then combined again to expand through the indoor expansion valve (220). Thereafter, the refrigerant flows into the indoor units 200a and 200b through the liquid pipes 214 of the indoor units 200a and 200b for cooling. The refrigerant introduced into the indoor units 200a and 200b is branched, and part of the refrigerant flows through the first heat exchange tube 231 and passes through the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230, and the other refrigerant flows into the indoor heat exchanger 210. The refrigerant passing through the indoor units 200a and 200b is in a low temperature and low pressure state because it is condensed in the indoor units 200c and 200d and then expanded. Accordingly, the refrigerant flowing through the first heat exchange tube 231 to the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230 absorbs heat by exchanging heat with the high temperature and high pressure refrigerant flowing through the second heat exchange tube 232 in the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger 230. To evaporate. In addition, the refrigerant flowing through the indoor heat exchanger 210 also absorbs heat from the room and evaporates. Then, the refrigerant passing through the refrigerant heat exchanger 230 and the indoor heat exchanger 210 is combined to pass through the third pipe 313 via the open / close valve 302 and then flow into the compressor.

The multi-room air conditioner according to the present invention, when the operating capacity for the cooling operation and the operating capacity for the heating operation is equal, to discharge the heat through the refrigerant heat exchanger 230 as well as the indoor heat exchangers (210c, 210d). Because of this, the refrigerant is sufficiently condensed.

As mentioned above, although the Example with respect to this invention was described concretely, this invention is not limited to the said Example and can be variously changed in the range which does not deviate from the technical idea of Claim.

For example, the refrigerant inter-heat exchanger according to the present invention has been described as being used only when the multi-chamber air conditioner performs simultaneous cooling and heating (electric heat recovery) operation. Of course it can be used.

As described above, the multi-chamber air conditioner according to the present invention can eliminate the instability of the operation of the air conditioner that occurs because the refrigerant is not sufficiently condensed due to the release of heat only in the indoor heat exchanger in the prior art.

In addition, the present invention by condensing the refrigerant sufficiently without using an outdoor unit during the heating and cooling operation (heat recovery), it is possible to protect the compressor by preventing the high temperature, high pressure rise of the refrigerant and at the same time to maintain a stable air conditioner system have.

Claims (4)

One outdoor unit having a compressor, a four-way valve, an outdoor heat exchanger, and an outdoor expansion valve, A plurality of indoor units each having an indoor heat exchanger and an indoor expansion valve; It is provided with a cooling and heating conversion unit for changing the direction of the refrigerant flowing into each indoor unit according to the operation mode of each indoor unit, The air-conditioning conversion unit is connected to the outdoor unit through the first, second and third pipes, and in the multi-chamber air conditioner connected to the respective indoor units through the gas pipe and the liquid pipe, A plurality of refrigerant heat exchangers for exchanging some of the refrigerant branched before the flow into the indoor heat exchanger from one indoor unit performing the heating operation to the indoor heat exchanger from the other indoor unit performing the cooling operation, Multi-room air conditioner, characterized in that it comprises a. The method of claim 1, The refrigerant passing through the refrigerant inter-exchanger is combined with the refrigerant passing through the indoor heat exchanger of each indoor unit. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The refrigerant passing through the refrigerant heat exchanger is a multi-room air conditioner, characterized in that the flow is controlled by the on-off valve. The method of claim 3, The on-off valve is a multi-room air conditioner, characterized in that the plurality of indoor units are opened when the cooling operation and the heating operation is operated with the equivalent operating capacity.

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