US 5,323,844 AGranted

Refrigerant heating type air conditioner

AssigneeKabushiki Kaisha Toshiba

InventorsShigeto Sumitani, Takeshi Sato, Miki Fujita

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A refrigerant heating type air conditioner operable in a cooling mode and a heating mode includes a first external heat exchanger which works as a condenser in the cooling mode and a second external heat-exchanger which works as an evaporator. Bypass means is disposed between a discharge side of a compressor and the second external heat-exchanger. An expansion valve is connected to an inner heat-exchanger, which works as a condenser in the heating mode, and to both the first and second external heat-exchangers. A control valve is disposed between a suction port side of the second external heat-exchanger for preventing the refrigerant from flowing to the second external heat-exchanger in the cooling mode. Pressure of the refrigerant which is trapped between the control valve and the expansion valve is increased by applying heat, by heating means, to the second external heat-exchanger. The heated refrigerant is released to the bypass means when its pressure exceeds to the pressure of discharged refrigerant from the compressor.

Claims15

Dependent claims

A refrigerant heating type air conditioner operable in a heating mode, comprising:

an external unit including means for compressing a refrigerant, a refrigerant heating unit including an external heat-exchanger that functions as an evaporator while in said heating mode, and means for heating the refrigerant of said external heat-exchanger while in said heating mode;
an inner unit including an inner heat-exchanger that functions as a condenser while in said heating mode;
distributing means for forming a refrigerant carrying loop, said distributing means including said compressing means, said inner heat-exchanger and said external heat-exchanger, wherein the refrigerant flows through said external heat-exchanger and said inner heat-exchanger while in the heating mode;
refrigerant flow control means, disposed in said distributing means, for controlling the flow of refrigerant, said flow control means including an expansion valve disposed between said inner heat-exchanger and said external heat-exchanger;
bypassing means, disposed between a discharge side of said compressor means and one end of said expansion valve, for releasing the refrigerant in said external heat-exchanger when the pressure of the refrigerant in said external heat-exchanger becomes higher than the pressure of refrigerant discharged from said compressor means while in the heating mode;
and
means for controlling th eoperation of said compressor means and said refrigerant flow control means, and for generating a signal to stop an operation of said compressor means when the pressure of refrigerant in said external heat-exchanger exceeds a predetermined pressure.

4 more elements

A refrigerant heating type air conditioner operable in a cooling mode and in a heating mode, comprising:

an external unit including means for compressing a refrigerant, a first external heat-exchanger that functions as a condenser while in said cooling mode, a refrigerant heating unit including a second external heat-exchanger that functions as an evaporator while in said heating mode, and means for heating the refrigerant of said second external heat-exchanger while in said heating mode;
an inner unit including a first inner heat-exchanger that functions as an evaporator while in said cooling mode and as a condenser while in said heating mode;
distributing means for forming a refrigerant carrying loop including said compressing means, said first inner heat-exchanger, and said first and second external heat-exchanger, wherein the refrigerant flows through said first inner heat-exchanger and said first external heat-exchanger while in said cooling mode, and flows though said second external heat-exchanger and said first inner heat-exchanger while in said heating mode;
refrigerant flow control means, disposed in said distributing means, for controlling the flow of refrigerant during said heating mode and said cooling mode, said flow control means including a first expansion valve disposed between said first inner heat-exchanger and said first and second external heat-exchanger, along with a control valve coupled to said second external heat-exchanger for preventing refrigerant from flowing to said compressing means through said second external heat-exchanger while in said cooling mode;
bypassing means, disposed between a discharge side of said compressing means and one end of said first expansion valve, for releasing refrigerant in said second external heat-exchanger when the pressure of the refrigerant in said second external heat-exchanger is higher than the pressure of the refrigerant discharged from said compressing means while in said heating mode;
and
means for controlling the operation of said compressing means and said refrigerant flow control means, and for generating a signal to stop an operation of said compressing means when the pressure of refrigerant in said second heat-exchanger exceeds a predetermined pressure.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 07/998,294Filed 30 Dec 1992
Priority: JP 4-06713725 Mar 1992
Granted: 28 Jun 1994
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification19 codes

F24F 3/06
Air-conditioning systems in which conditioned primary air is supplied from one or more central stations to distributing units in the rooms or…:…
F25B 13/00
Compression machines, plants or systems, with reversible cycle
F25B 41/20
Fluid-circulation arrangements: disposition of valves, e.g. of on-off valves or flow control valves
F25B 41/24
Disposition of valves, e.g. of on-off valves or flow control valves: arrangement of shut-off valves for disconnecting a part of the refrigerant…