Heat-pump water heater
AssigneeMitsubishi Electric Corporation
InventorsKosuke Kawano, Kimitaka Kadowaki
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A heat-pump water heater includes a refrigerant circuit, a water circuit, and a controller. The refrigerant circuit includes a main circuit and a bypass circuit. The main circuit includes a compressor, a water heat exchanger, a first pressure-reducing device, an air heat exchanger, and an air-sending device. The bypass circuit includes a second pressure-reducing device. The water circuit includes a hot water tank, a water pump, and the water heater exchanger. In a night-time hot-water supply mode, the controller causes the water pump with a lowest frequency set in advance, causes the compressor with a lowest frequency set in advance, and stops the air-sending device.
Claims7
A heat-pump water heater comprising:
- a refrigerant circuit in which refrigerant circulates through refrigerant pipes;
- a water circuit in which water circulates through water pipes;
- and
- a controller configured to control components provided in the refrigerant circuit and components provided in the water circuit,
- wherein the refrigerant circuit includes a main circuit and a bypass circuit,
- wherein the main circuit is formed such that components in the main circuit are sequentially connected, and includes
- a compressor configured to compress the refrigerant sucked in to the compressor, and discharge the refrigerant which is compressed,
- a water heat exchanger configured to cause heat exchange to be performed between the refrigerant which flows in the refrigerant circuit and the water which flows in the water circuit,
- a first pressure-reducing device configured to reduce a pressure of the refrigerant, and
- an air heat exchanger including heat exchange circuitry and a fan, the heat exchange circuitry being configured to cause heat exchange to be performed between air and the refrigerant, the fan being configured to send to the heat exchange circuitry, the air which is subjected to the heat exchange with the refrigerant,
- wherein the refrigerant pipes include a first refrigerant pipe between the compressor and the water heat exchanger and a second refrigerant pipe between the air heat exchanger and the compressor,
- wherein the bypass circuit forms a flow passage that connects the first refrigerant pipe between the compressor and the water heat exchanger and the second refrigerant pipe between the air heat exchanger and the compressor, the bypass circuit including a second pressure-reducing device configured to adjust a flow rate of the refrigerant which flows in the bypass circuit,
- wherein the water circuit includes
- a hot water tank configured to store water supplied from the outside and heated water,
- a water pump configured to supply water that flows out from the hot water tank to the water heat exchanger and supply water that flows out from the water heat exchanger to the hot water tank, and
- the water heat exchanger,
- wherein the controller is configured to perform controls in a night-time hot-water supply mode different from controls in a normal hot-water supply mode, in the night-time hot-water supply mode which is during night-time, the water is heated by the heat exchange between the water and the refrigerant in the water heat exchanger, and the water which is heated is stored in the hot water tank, one of the controls in the night-time hot-water supply mode being performed to cause the water pump to operate with a lowest frequency set in advance, an other one of the controls in the night-time hot-water supply mode being performed to cause the compressor to operate with a lowest frequency set in advance, the other one of the controls being performed to stop the fan.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.