JPH09263120A - Air conditioner for automobile - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To miniaturize a mode switching section in an air conditioner for automobiles. SOLUTION: Five blowoff modes, i.e., face mode. bi-level mode, foot mode, foot.defroster mode and defroster mode, are set to be switched by operating a face defroster door 14 and a foot door 11 in interlock relation, and a face blowoff air passage 12 is made to branch to passages for a center face blowoff ports (2) and (3) and passages for side face blowoff ports (1) and (4), and the passages for this side face blowoff ports (1) and (4) is maintained opened in all modes.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air conditioner for an automobile in which five blowing modes of face, bi-level, foot, foot defroster, and defroster can be switched and set with only two doors.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an air conditioner for an automobile, usually, the above-mentioned five blowing modes are switched and set by using three to five doors. Also, in the air conditioning system for automobiles, of the face outlets, the side face outlets arranged at the left and right ends of the instrument panel perform cooling action by blowing cool air toward the upper body of the passenger during the summer cooling season. In the winter heating season, it is known that hot air is blown toward the side window glass of a vehicle to prevent the side window glass from being fogged.

[0003]

By the way, in the conventional apparatus, since 3 to 5 blowout mode doors are used, the operation link mechanism for the blowout mode doors becomes complicated, and among the air conditioning cases, Blowout mode The shape of the door storage portion becomes complicated, resulting in an increase in cost. In addition, since the operation link mechanism requires a large operating force due to complexity, there is a problem that the mode switching operation becomes heavy in the case of the manual operation type, and in the case of the automatic operation type, the door operation is difficult. There is a problem that a large actuator is required for use. Further, the ventilation resistance is increased due to the complicated shape of the case, which causes problems such as a decrease in air flow and an increase in noise.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points,
In the air conditioning system for automobiles, the side face outlet has the function of cooling by the blowing of cool air in summer and the function of preventing the fogging of the side window glass by blowing hot air in the winter.The overall shape including the blowing mode switching door is small and simple. The purpose is to achieve

[0005]

The present invention employs the following technical means to achieve the above object. Claim 1
In the invention described in 3, the main air passage (8) through which the air whose temperature is adjusted to a predetermined temperature by exchanging heat with the heat exchangers (3, 5) flows.
And a foot door (1) for opening and closing the foot blowout air passage (10) for taking in air from the main air passage (8).
1) is provided, and the face blowout air passageway (12) and the defroster blowout air passageway (13) which are provided on the downstream side of the foot blowout air passageway (10) and take in air from the main air passageway (8) are opened and closed. The face defroster door (14) is provided, and the face outlet air passage (12) is
A passage (1) communicating with a center face outlet (,) that blows air from the central portion of the vehicle instrument panel to the upper side of the vehicle compartment
2b, 12c), and the side face outlets (,,
) To a passage (12a, 12d) communicating with
(A) When the face mode is set, the defroster outlet air passage (13) closes the face defroster door (14), and the face outlet air passage (12) has the passage (12).
a to 12d) to the open position (a) and the foot door (11) to the close position (c) of the foot air passage (10). (b) When the bilevel mode is set, the face defroster door is opened. (14) is operated to the position (a), and the foot door (11) is operated to an intermediate opening position (d) in which the foot blowout air passageway (10) is opened by a predetermined amount. The defroster outlet air passage (13) opens the face defroster door (14), and the passage (1) for the center face outlet (,) of the face outlet air passage (12).
2b, 12c) only, and the side face outlets (,) passages (12a, 12d) are opened to the position (b), and the foot door (11) is moved to the maximum amount by the foot air passage (10). Operate to the maximum opening position (f) that opens to the vicinity, and (d) when the foot / defroster mode is set, operate the face / defroster door (14) to the position (b) and also to the foot door (11).
Is operated to an intermediate opening position (e) where the foot air passage (10) is opened by a predetermined amount, and (e) the face defroster door (14) is operated to the position (b) when the defroster mode is set. (11) is operated to the position (c).

As a result, only by using the two mode switching doors (11, 14) described above,
It is possible to switch and set five blowing modes of (e). Moreover,
Side face outlet (,) passages (12a, 1)
2d) can remain open in all modes. Therefore, while maintaining the function of the side face outlet (,) to serve as a cooling function by blowing cold air in summer and a function to prevent fogging of the side window glass by blowing hot air in winter, the size of the blowing mode switching door is greatly increased. Can be reduced to

As a result, the overall shape of the air conditioning unit including the blowout mode switching door can be made extremely compact, and the installation of the air conditioning unit can be facilitated and the air conditioning unit can be installed easily even in a vehicle having a large vehicle interior space restriction. By making the unit compact, the space inside the vehicle can be effectively used for installing other devices. Further, the cost can be reduced by reducing the size and simplification of the air conditioning unit and reducing the number of parts.

The reference numerals in parentheses of the above-mentioned means indicate the correspondence with the concrete means described in the embodiments described later.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an air conditioning unit installed in a lower portion of a vehicle interior instrument panel of an air conditioning system for a vehicle, and in this example, the air conditioning unit 1 is arranged at a substantially central portion in a vehicle width direction. The air conditioning unit 1 has a case 2 molded of a resin such as polypropylene.

The case 2 has an air flow passage formed therein, and houses equipment such as a heat exchanger described later. As is well known, a plurality of cases 2 (usually 2
), And after storing equipment such as a heat exchanger and a door, which will be described later, a plurality of divided case bodies are integrally connected by an appropriate connecting means such as a metal clip or a screw. It has a structure to do.

Reference numeral 3 denotes an evaporator disposed in a portion of the case 2 on the front side of the vehicle. The evaporator 3 is provided with a compressor, a condenser, a liquid receiver, and a decompressor (not shown) in a well-known refrigeration cycle. It is configured and acts as a cooling heat exchanger for dehumidifying and cooling the air blown into the case 2. The compressor of the refrigeration cycle is driven by an automobile engine via an electromagnetic clutch (not shown).

Reference numeral 4 denotes an upstream air opening of the evaporator 3, into which blown air from a blower (not shown) flows. The blower is a well-known blower that is arranged on the lateral side of the air conditioning unit 1 in the vehicle left-right direction and includes a centrifugal multi-blade fan, a fan drive motor, and a scroll casing. This blower introduces outside air or inside air through a well-known inside / outside air switching box (not shown) and blows the air to the air opening 4.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a heater core, which is disposed in the lower portion of the case 2 on the vehicle rear side, in other words, on the air downstream side of the evaporator 3. The heater core 5 is a heating heat exchanger that heats air by using the cooling water of the automobile engine as a heat source, and reheats the cold air cooled by the evaporator 3. Further, in the case 2, a cold air passage 6 in which the cold air cooled by the evaporator 3 bypasses the heater core 5 and flows is formed on the air downstream side of the evaporator 3 toward the upper side.

On the other hand, in the case 2, a warm air passage 7 through which warm air heated by the heater core 5 flows is formed at a downstream side portion of the heater core 5, and the warm air passage 7 is as shown in the drawing. Extending upward from the air downstream side of the heater core 5,
Further, it passes through the passage 7a above the heater core 5 and makes a U-turn to the front side of the vehicle to join the downstream side of the cold air passage 6. Therefore, a mixing passage 8 for cold and warm air is formed at this merging portion. In this example, the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 constitutes a main air passage.

Reference numeral 9 denotes a temperature adjusting air mix door, which is rotatable about a shaft 9a arranged at the upper end of the heater core 5, and depending on the opening degree of the air mix door 9, the cool air passage 6 and the warm air are blown. The temperature of the air blown into the vehicle compartment is adjusted by adjusting the air flow rate of the passage 7. Further, the air mix door 9 is provided with an auxiliary door 9b that integrally rotates so as to project into the upper passage 7a of the heater core 5.

The air mix door 9 has a sealing packing material 9d on both front and back surfaces of a core plate 9c made of resin or metal.
It has a fixed structure. In the case 2, an outlet mode switching mechanism, which is a feature of the present invention, is arranged above the cold / hot air mixing passage 8. The blowout mode switching mechanism has a configuration shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, and a foot blowout air passage 10 is first opened at an upper side (air downstream side) of the cold / hot air mixing passage 8. This foot blowing air passage 10
Is opened and closed by a foot door 11 which is rotatable around a shaft 11a. This foot blowing air passage 10 is shown in FIGS.
The foot outlets on the driver's seat side and the passenger's seat side, which are shown in FIG. 2, are branched into two passages that communicate with each other, hang down to the position of the occupant's feet, and both foot outlets that are open to this foot position,
It is designed to blow out warm air from.

The upper side (air downstream side) of the foot blowing air passage 10 and the foot door 11 is branched into two air passages to form a face blowing air passage 12 and a defroster blowing air passage 13. Here, the face outlet air passage 12 is provided with four passages 12a to 12d that communicate with the driver-side and passenger-side center face outlets and the side face outlets shown in FIGS.
(See FIG. 5).

The center face outlet is disposed above the central portion of the instrument panel (not shown) in the front of the passenger compartment, from which air is blown toward the upper body of the occupant near the central portion of the passenger compartment, and the side The face outlets are located above the left and right ends of the instrument panel, from which air is blown toward the upper half of the occupant on the left and right sides of the vehicle compartment, and the air is blown toward the side window glass of the vehicle. The blowout state is selected and used. Each of these face outlets is provided with a well-known wind direction changing grill mechanism (not shown).

The defroster outlet air passage 13 communicates with a defroster outlet that blows air toward the front window glass of the vehicle. Reference numeral 14 is a face / defroster door that switches and opens the face blowout air passage 12 and the defroster blowout air passage 13, and is rotatable about a shaft 14a. The face defroster door 14 keeps the side face outlets open even when the face defroster door 14 is operated to the closed position of the face outlet air passage 12 as shown in FIG.

Therefore, as shown in FIG.
The width W1 of the defroster door 14 is made smaller than the width W2 of the face air passage 12, and passages of size A are formed on the left and right sides of the door 14 to form a center face outlet,
Even in the closed state, the passages 12a and 12d leading to the side face outlets are kept open.

Further, in order to maintain the air flow to the side face outlets in the full blowout mode, the foot door 11 has a similar structure. That is, in the foot mode, the foot door 11 is operated to a position where the foot blowout air passage 10 is fully opened (position f in FIG. 2). A passage B is formed, and hot air is passed through this passage B through the passages 12a, 12 for the side face outlets.
d and the defroster blowout air passage 13 can be introduced.

The above-mentioned two mode switching doors 11 and 14 are connected to a link mechanism (not shown) and operate in conjunction with each other. The drive mechanism of this link mechanism may be a well-known one. For example, the link mechanism controls a manual operation force applied to a manual operation lever (air supply mode switching operation lever) of an air-conditioning control panel (not shown) provided in an instrument panel of a vehicle cabin. By transmitting to the link mechanism via a cable, the door 1
A mechanism for rotating 1, 14 is provided. Alternatively, the link mechanism may be driven by an actuator such as a servomotor automatically controlled by the air-conditioning control device to rotate the doors 11 and 14.

Next, the operation of this embodiment having the above-mentioned structure will be described. Now, when a blower (not shown) is operated, the inside air or the outside air is sucked from an inside / outside air switching box (not shown), and this intake air passes through the blower to the air opening 4
Is blown to the evaporator 3 and is cooled there to become cold air. Next, the cold air passes through the cold air passage 6 and the hot air passage 7 on the heater core 5 side according to the opening position of the air mix door 9.
The cold air that has branched into and flows into the heater core 5 is reheated by the heater core 5 to become warm air, and flows through the hot air passage 7. Then, the warm air from the hot air passage 7 and the cold air from the cold air passage 6 are mixed in the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 to become conditioned air of a desired temperature, and then at the mode switching doors 11 and 14. Selected outlet air passages 10, 12, 1
The air is blown into the vehicle compartment from a predetermined air outlet through any one or more of the three.

In FIG. 1, the air mix door 9
The solid line position indicates the maximum cooling position where the hot air passage 7 on the heater core 5 side is fully closed and the cold air passage 6 is fully opened. In this example, since the hot water valve for connecting and disconnecting the hot water flow to the heater core 5 is eliminated, the warm air heated by the heater core 5 at the time of maximum cooling flows into the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 from the upper passage 7a by natural convection. It is suppressed by the auxiliary door 9b.

Further, in FIG. 1, the air mix door 9
2 indicates the maximum heating position where the cold air passage 6 is fully closed and the warm air passage 7 on the heater core 5 side is fully opened. Since the above is the outline of the operation of the entire air conditioner, the blowout mode switching operation, which is a feature of the present invention, will be described in detail. In the present embodiment, when the user operates the blowout mode switching lever of the air conditioning control panel, the operating force is switched between two modes (for face / defroster and for foot) via the control cable and the link mechanism. Transmitted to the doors 11 and 14 of the
14 is interlocked to set a predetermined blowout mode.

First, the "face mode" will be described. When the face / defroster door 14 is operated to the position "a" in FIG. 2, the defroster blowout air passage 13 is fully closed, and the passages 12a to 12d of the face blowout air passage 12 are closed. Fully open. Further, the foot door 11 is operated to the position c in FIG. 2 to fully close the foot blowout air passage 10. This allows
All the conditioned air from the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 flows into the face outlet air passage 12, and is blown out from the center face outlet and the side face outlet to the upper side in the vehicle compartment.

Next, the "bi-level mode" will be described. When the face / defroster door 14 is operated to the position a in FIG. 2, the defroster outlet air passage 13 is fully closed.
The passages 12a to 12d of the face blowing air passage 12 are fully opened. On the other hand, the foot door 11 is operated to a first opening position (intermediate opening position) d slightly opened from the fully closed position c in FIG. 2 to slightly open the foot blowout air passage 10.

As a result, a part of the conditioned air from the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 flows into the foot blowout air passage 10, blows out from the foot blowout opening to the foot portion of the occupant, and at the same time, flows into the face blowout air passage 12. From the center face outlet and the side face outlets, blow out to the upper side in the passenger compartment. Next, the “foot mode” will be described. When the face / defroster door 14 is operated to the position b in FIG. 2 to fully open the defroster blowout air passage 13, the center blowout port of the face blowout air passage 12 is used. The passages 12b and 12c are completely closed. However, at this time, the passages 12a and 12d for the side face outlets are still maintained in the open state by the passage of the dimension A.

On the other hand, the foot door 11 is operated to the third opening position (maximum opening position) f in FIG. 2 to widen the opening of the foot blowout air passage 10 to near the maximum amount, and The face blowout air passage 12 and the defroster blowout air passage 13 are communicated with each other by a passage having a dimension B shown in FIG. In this state, the face outlet air passage 1
2. The opening degree of the air flow path to the defroster blowout air passage 13 is very small.

As described above, most of the conditioned air from the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 flows into the foot blowing air passage 10 and is blown from the foot outlet to the foot of the occupant. At the same time, a part of the conditioned air is in the passage 1 of the face air passage 12
It blows out from the side face outlets through the side face outlets 2a and 12d to the upper side in the vehicle compartment from both left and right ends of the instrument panel, and passes through the defroster outlet air passage 13 and blows out from the defroster outlet toward the vehicle front window glass. . Here, by directing the air blown from the side face outlets to the vehicle side window glass, it is possible to prevent the vehicle side window glass from becoming frosted.

Next, the "foot / defroster mode" will be described.
2b, and the foot door 11 is moved to the first position in FIG.
It is operated to the second opening position e which is an intermediate position between the opening position d and the third opening position f. As a result, the cold / hot air mixing passage 8
Approximately half of the conditioned air from the air flows into the foot outlet air passage 10, and is blown out from the foot outlet to the foot of the occupant. At the same time, the remaining approximately half of the conditioned air is discharged from the side face outlet and the defroster outlet. Therefore, the amount of air blown from the side face outlet and the defroster outlet increases, and the anti-fog effect of the window glass increases.

Next, the "defroster mode" will be explained. When the face / defroster door 14 is operated to the position b in FIG. 2 and the foot door 11 is operated to the position c in FIG. Close. As a result, most of the conditioned air from the cold / hot air mixing passage 8 passes through the defroster blowing air passage 13 and is blown out from the defroster outlet toward the vehicle front window glass. At the same time,
Part of the rest of the conditioned air blows out from the side face outlet. Therefore, the amount of air blown from the side face outlet and the defroster outlet is further increased, and the anti-fog effect of the window glass is further increased.

FIG. 6 collectively shows the open / closed states of the outlets through in the above-mentioned blowout modes. In the figure, ◯ indicates an open state and x indicates a closed state. As is apparent from FIG. 6, the side face outlets are open in all modes. In each of the blowing modes, when the face / defroster door 14 is at the position b in FIG. 2, the air volume to the side face outlets is reduced by making the dimension A smaller than the width of the passages 12a and 12d. It is like this.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the operation position of the foot door 11 is set by setting first to third opening positions d, e, f in addition to the fully closed position c of the foot blowout air passage 10. By controlling the air flow rate to the foot blowout air passage 10, the air flow rates to the other air outlets to are relatively controlled. Such air volume and air volume distribution can be adjusted by changing the door width W1 or the case side passage width W2 shown in FIG. 5 and changing the dimensions A and B. (Other Embodiments) The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and can be implemented in various forms. For example, in the above-described embodiments, the air volume ratio of cold air and warm air is determined by the air mix door. Although a so-called air-mix type air conditioner for automobiles which adjusts the blown air temperature by adjusting 9 is described, a hot water flow rate-adjusted type that adjusts the blown air temperature by adjusting the hot water flow rate flowing into the heater core 5 has been described. The present invention is also applicable to an air conditioner for automobiles.

Further, without providing the evaporator 3 in the case 2,
The present invention is also applicable to an automobile air conditioner provided with only the heater core 5. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the operation position of the foot door 11 is set to different opening positions d and e in the bilevel mode and the foot / defroster mode. You may make it operate | move to an opening position.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the arrangement of heat exchanger parts in an embodiment of the device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a blowout mode switching portion in an embodiment of the device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing the arrangement of outlets in an embodiment of the device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the same portion as FIG.

5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram collectively showing the blowout mode switching operation of the embodiment of the device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Air-conditioning unit, 2 ... Case, 3 ... Evaporator, 5 ... Heater core, 8 ... Cold / hot air mixing passage (main air passage), 10 ... Foot blowing air passage, 11 ... Foot door, 12 ... Face blowing air passage, 12a ... 12d ... Branch passage, 13 ... Defroster outlet air passage, 14 ... Face defroster door, ... Side face outlet, ... Center face outlet, ... Foot outlet.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A. First Embodiment Case that forms an air flow path (2)
And B. A heat exchanger (3, 5) provided in the case (2) for exchanging heat with the blown air; A main air passage (8) through which air whose temperature is adjusted to a predetermined temperature by exchanging heat with the heat exchangers (3, 5) flows; A foot outlet air passageway (10) for taking in air from the main air passageway (8); A foot outlet (,) that blows out the air taken in from the foot outlet air passage (10) to the foot of the occupant; A foot door (11) for opening and closing the foot air passage (10) and the main air passage (8); A face outlet air passage (12) and a defroster outlet air passage (13) provided downstream of the foot outlet air passage (10) for taking in air from the main air passage (8); A face defroster door (14) for opening and closing the face blowout air passageway (12) and the defroster blowout air passageway (13); A defroster outlet () that blows out the air taken in from the defroster outlet air passage (13) toward the vehicle front window glass; The face outlet air passage (12) is a passage (12b, 12) communicating with a center face outlet (,) that blows air from the central portion of the vehicle instrument panel to the upper side of the vehicle compartment.
c) and the passages (12a, 12d) communicating with the side face outlets (,) that blow out air from the left and right sides of the vehicle instrument panel to the upper side of the vehicle interior. K. When the face mode is set, the face defroster door (14) is connected to the defroster blowing air passageway (13).
Is operated to a position (a) in which the passages (12a to 12d) of the face blowout air passageway (12) are opened and the foot door (11) is closed to the foot blowout air passageway (10) (c). To L. When the bi-level mode is set, the face / defroster door (14) is operated to the position (a), and the foot door (11) is opened at an intermediate opening position (d) by which the foot blowout air passageway (10) opens a predetermined amount. ) To M. When the foot mode is set, the face defroster door (14) is connected to the defroster blown air passage (1
3) is opened, and of the face outlet air passages (12), only the passages (12b, 12c) for the center face outlets (,) are closed and the passages (12a) for the side face outlets (,). , 12d) to the open position (b), and the foot door (1
1) is operated to the maximum opening position (f) in which the foot blowout air passageway (10) is opened up to near the maximum amount, and N. When the foot / defroster mode is set, the face / defroster door (14) is operated to the position (b), and the foot door (11) is opened at a middle opening position (a predetermined amount). e), O. An air conditioner for an automobile, wherein when the defroster mode is set, the face defroster door (14) is operated to the position (b) and the foot door (11) is operated to the position (c). 2. The passages (12a, 12) for the side face outlets (,) in the case (2) on both sides of the face defroster door (14).
The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, characterized in that a passage (A) which is always in communication with (d) is formed. 3. The foot door (1) is provided on both sides of the foot door (11) in the case (2).
The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, characterized in that a passage (B) is formed to allow the upstream side of 1) to always communicate with the downstream side.