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AssigneeMatsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.
InventorsKatsumi Fukuda, Masaharu Ebihara, Tadahiko Hayakumo, Tsunehiko Todoroki
Estimating the term…
The disclosure is directed to an air flow direction control device for an air conditioner such as a room air conditioner, which includes a discharge direction changing blade for controlling air flow discharge direction, a shape memory alloy or SMA member for rotating the blade in one direction and a bias spring for urging the blade in the other direction, a lever arm urged to contact a shaft of the blade and a releasing mechanism for releasing the lever arm from its contact with the shaft. According to the present invention, the blasted air temperature detecting unit, motor for driving the blade, control unit for controlling and driving the motor, etc. conventionally required may be dispensed with for reduction in cost, and furthermore, it becomes possible to properly alter the air flow discharging direction according to the temperatures of the blasted air.
A discharge direction control device for an air conditioner, which comprises a discharge direction changing blade for controlling the discharge direction of air flow upwardly and downwardly, a shape memory alloy member for rotating the discharge direction changing blade in one direction, and a bias spring member for urging said discharge direction changing blade to rotate in the other direction which are provided at an air blast opening of the air conditioner arranged to blast heat-exchanged air therefrom, a lever arm member urged to contact a shaft at one end of said discharge direction changing blade, and a releasing mechanism for releasing said lever arm member from the contact thereof with said shaft.
A discharge direction control device for a room air conditioner, which comprises a discharge direction changing blade for altering the discharge direction of air blast upwardly or downwardly, said discharge direction changing blade being pivotally supported, at opposite ends thereof, by lateral side walls of an air blast opening of the air conditioner arranged to blast heat-exchanged air therefrom, and a bias spring provided at one side of said side walls and functioning to maintain said discharge direction changing blade horizontal, the other side of said side walls for the air blast opening being provided with a lever arm urged by a spring member to contact an end portion of said discharge direction changing blade, a releasing mechanism for releasing said lever arm from its contact with said discharge direction changing blade, a shape memory alloy member which changes its shape so as to direct said discharge direction changing blade downwardly when the air blast from said air blast opening has a temperature above a predetermined temperature, and a protecting cover covering said shape memory alloy member and integrally formed with said lever arm, with a large number of ventilating holes being formed in said protecting cover.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.