Auto-adjusting fan assembly for an air conditioning appliance
AssigneeHaier US Appliance Solutions, Inc.
InventorJoshua Duane Longenecker
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An air conditioner unit is configured for automatically detecting a restricted duct and adjusting fan speed schedules in response. The air conditioner unit includes an indoor fan including a drive motor for selectively rotating the indoor fan to urge a flow of air through the indoor portion and a controller is configured for sending a control signal to the drive motor to rotate the indoor fan to an actual fan speed. Based on the actual fan speed and a unit voltage, the controller obtains a target control signal, e.g., via a lookup table, and determines that a restricted duct condition exists if the control signal is different than the target control signal. The controller adjusts the operation of the indoor fan in response to determining that the restricted duct condition exists.
Claims20
An air conditioner unit defining a vertical, a lateral, and a transverse direction, the air conditioner unit comprising:
- a bulkhead positioned within a cabinet and defining an indoor portion and an outdoor portion;
- an indoor fan including a drive motor for selectively rotating the indoor fan to urge a flow of air through the indoor portion;
- and
- a controller operably coupled to the indoor fan, the controller being configured for:
- sending a control signal to the drive motor to rotate the indoor fan;
- determining an actual fan speed of the indoor fan;
- obtaining a target control signal based at least in part on the actual fan speed of the indoor fan;
- determining that a restricted duct condition exists if the control signal is different than the target control signal;
- and
- adjusting the operation of the indoor fan in response to determining that the restricted duct condition exists.
A method of operating an indoor fan of an air conditioner unit, the indoor fan including a drive motor for selectively rotating the indoor fan to urge a flow of air through an indoor portion of the air conditioner unit, the method comprising:
- sending a control signal to the drive motor to rotate the indoor fan;
- determining an actual fan speed of the indoor fan;
- obtaining a target control signal based at least in part on the actual fan speed of the indoor fan;
- determining that a restricted duct condition exists if the control signal is different than the target control signal;
- and
- adjusting the operation of the indoor fan in response to determining that the restricted duct condition exists.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.