JP3846392B2 - Air conditioner for vehicles - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a vehicle air conditioner that appropriately guides conditioned air to a front seat side and a rear seat side in a vehicle interior.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a vehicle air conditioner that reduces airflow interference on the front seat side and efficiently blows conditioned air from the front to the rear of the vehicle (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to this, an air outlet is provided in the instrument panel facing the space between the driver's seat and the passenger seat, and the air conditioned air is drawn from the air outlet to the rear seat side in a parabolic manner. The air conditioning duct is curved and formed.
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-6-247137
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the apparatus described in the above publication, the conditioned air is only blown from the front to the rear of the vehicle interior, and the conditioned air stays at the rear of the vehicle interior. When the conditioned air stays, the blowing of the conditioned air to the rear seat side is hindered, and the air conditioning comfort of the passenger is impaired. In particular, since a vehicle having a three-row seat has a large vehicle interior space, the conditioned air from the front of the vehicle interior diffuses before reaching the third row, and it is difficult to satisfy the air-conditioning comfort of the third-row occupant. Such deterioration in air-conditioning comfort is greater during cooling when the cool air is directly applied to the body than during heating when the entire vehicle interior is warmed.
[0005]
An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle air conditioner capable of improving the air conditioning comfort of a rear seat passenger.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
An air conditioner for a vehicle according to the present invention is mounted on a vehicle having a front seat, a second seat, and a third seat arranged in the vehicle longitudinal direction, and an air conditioning unit that generates conditioned air at a predetermined temperature from air sucked by a blower fan; A vent outlet provided in the instrument panel, a vent duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the vent outlet, and the foot of the third seat so that the conditioned air is blown from the vent outlet to the rear of the vehicle interior. And a third foot duct that guides the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the third foot outlet so that the conditioned air is blown from the third foot outlet toward the foot of the third seat, Air intake duct that branches off from the third foot duct and connects to the internal air intake duct on the upstream side of the blower fan, and air conditioning Switching between the third foot outlet and the air conditioning unit or internal air intake duct so that the air can be blown out from the rear foot outlet or air from the rear foot outlet can be sucked in. When the door, the mode setting means for setting the air conditioning mode, and the air conditioning mode for blowing air from the third foot air outlet are set by the mode setting means, the third foot air outlet and the air conditioning unit are connected, and air is not blown from the third foot air outlet. When the air conditioning mode is set, the above-described object is achieved by including door switching means for switching the switching door so that the third foot outlet and the inside air suction duct communicate with each other.
[0007]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, the third foot duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the third foot outlet is provided by branching the suction duct reaching the internal air suction duct on the upstream side of the blower fan, and the third foot outlet and the air conditioner. A switching door that selectively communicates with the unit or the inside air suction duct is provided, and when the air conditioning mode for blowing air from the third foot outlet is set, the third foot outlet and the air conditioning unit are connected, and air is blown from the third foot outlet. When the air conditioning mode is set, the third foot outlet is connected to the inside air suction duct. As a result, the air in the vehicle compartment is sucked from the third foot outlet in the vent mode, and the air does not stay behind the vehicle interior, so the conditioned air from the front of the vehicle can be smoothly guided to the vehicle rear through the vehicle interior, The air-conditioning comfort for the rear-seat passengers is improved. A vehicle having three rows of seats is particularly effective because the interior of the vehicle is wide.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a side view of an essential part of a vehicle having a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. Three rows of seats (front seat 10, second seat 20, and third seat 30) are arranged in the vehicle interior.
[0009]
The air conditioning unit 100 that generates the conditioned air is disposed in the inner space of the instrument panel IP in front of the vehicle interior. The instrument panel IP is provided with a pair of left and right center vent outlets 11 </ b> A and a side vent outlet 11 </ b> B (also referred to as a front vent outlet 11) facing the front seat 10. A third vent outlet 31 is provided at the center of the instrument panel IP in the vehicle width direction so as to face the upper space between the driver seat and the passenger seat. The third vent outlet 31 is located above the front vent outlet 11.
[0010]
The front vent outlet 11 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via the front vent duct 12, and a duct passage is formed so that the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit 100 is blown toward the upper body of the first row passengers. The third vent outlet 31 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via the third vent duct 32, and the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit 100 passes through the upper part of the passenger compartment between the driver seat and the passenger seat and is blown to the third row passengers. A duct passage is formed as shown.
[0011]
The left and right side panels slightly behind the front seat 10 are provided with a second vent outlet 21 facing the second seat 20. The second vent outlet 21 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via a second vent duct 22 stored under the floor, and a duct passage is provided so that the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit 100 is blown toward the upper body of the second row passengers. Is formed. A blower fan 25 is provided in the middle of the second vent duct 22, and the conditioned air in the duct 22 is blown to the second vent outlet 21 by the blower fan 25. As a result, air blowing from the second vent outlet 21 is assisted, and desired air can be obtained even when the duct 22 is long and the airflow resistance is large.
[0012]
A front foot outlet 13 is provided below the instrument panel IP so as to face the foot of the front seat 10, and the front foot outlet 13 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via a front foot duct 14. A second foot air outlet 23 is provided below the front seat 10 so as to face the foot of the second seat 20, and the second foot air outlet 23 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via a second foot duct 24. A third foot outlet 33 is provided below the second seat 20 so as to face the foot of the third seat 30, and the third foot outlet 33 is connected to the air conditioning unit 100 via a third foot duct 34. In addition, although illustration is abbreviate | omitted in FIGS. 1-3, the defrost blower outlet is provided in the vicinity of the front window. The shape of the connection part between the third foot duct 34 and the air conditioning unit 100 will be described later.
[0013]
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the vehicle air conditioner according to the present embodiment. The air conditioning unit 100 mainly includes a blow aching unit 101 that sucks and cools air and a heater unit 102 that heats air.
[0014]
A blower fan 4 is disposed at the inlet of the duct 3 of the air conditioning unit 100, and the blower fan 4 is rotated by driving a blower motor 5. When the blower fan 4 rotates, the inside air or the outside air is sucked into the duct 3 from the inside air suction duct 61 or the outside air suction duct 62 via the inside / outside air switching door 6, and is cooled by passing through the evaporator 1. This cooling air passes through the heater core 2 at a rate corresponding to the opening degree of the air mix door 7 and is heated or bypasses the heater core 2 while remaining as cooling air. The air that has passed through and bypassed the heater core 2 is mixed in the air mix chamber 8 downstream of the heater core 2 to obtain conditioned air at a predetermined temperature.
[0015]
Each drive of the blower motor 5, the inside / outside air switching door 6, and the air mix door 7 is controlled by a known air conditioning controller. That is, using the set temperature, the amount of solar radiation, the passenger compartment temperature, and the outside air temperature, the target blowing temperature is calculated by a well-known arithmetic expression, and the target opening degree of the air mix door 7 is calculated based on the deviation between the target blowing temperature and the current suction temperature. Is calculated. And each drive of the blower motor 5, the inside / outside air switching door 6, and the air mix door 7 is controlled according to a target air mix door opening degree. These can be driven manually according to the switch operation of the passenger.
[0016]
A vent duct 94, a foot duct 95, and a differential duct 96 are connected to the air mix chamber 8 via an openable / closable vent door 91, a foot door 92, and a differential door 93, respectively. The vent duct 94 branches to the front vent duct 12, the second vent duct 22, and the third vent duct 32, respectively. The foot duct 95 branches to the front foot duct 14, the second foot duct 24, and the third foot duct 34, respectively. Yes.
[0017]
In the second vent duct 22 and the third vent duct 32, a second door 26 and a third door 35 capable of opening and closing the duct passage are provided, respectively. These doors 26 and 35 can be opened and closed arbitrarily according to a switch operation described later. The blower fan 25 in the second vent duct 22 is driven in conjunction with the opening / closing operation of the second door 26, for example. That is, when the second door 26 is opened, the blower fan 25 is driven, and when the second door 26 is closed, the blower fan 25 is stopped. You may make it drive the blower fan 25 according to a passenger | crew's switch operation.
[0018]
The detailed shape of the connection part of the third foot duct 34 and the air conditioning unit 100 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, a suction duct 36 is provided in the vicinity of the connecting portion between the third foot duct 34 and the heater unit 101 so as to branch from the third foot duct 34. The front end of the suction duct 36 is connected to the inside air suction duct 61 of the blow aching unit 102. A turnable switching door 37 is provided at a branch portion of the third foot duct 34. When the switching door 37 is rotated to the position a in the figure, the third foot outlet 33 and the air mix chamber 8 communicate with each other via the third foot duct 34, and the communication between the third foot outlet 33 and the suction duct 36 is prevented. When the switching door 37 is rotated to the position b, the third foot outlet 33 and the inside air suction duct 61 communicate with each other through the suction duct 36, and the communication between the third foot outlet 33 and the air mix chamber 8 is prevented.
[0019]
The vent door 91, the foot door 92, the differential door 93, the second door 26, the third door 35, and the switching door 37 are provided with door driving actuators 91a, 92a, 93a, 26a, 35a, 37a, respectively. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control circuit of the door driving actuators 91a, 92a, 93a, 26a, 35a, 37a. As shown in FIG. 6, the air conditioning controller 50 includes various sensors 51 such as an inside air temperature sensor, an outside air temperature sensor, a solar radiation sensor, and a suction temperature sensor, an auto switch 52 for instructing an auto air conditioner operation, and a mode switch for instructing an air conditioning mode. 53, a differential switch 54, a second door switch 55 for instructing opening / closing of the second door 26, and a third door switch 56 for instructing opening / closing of the third door 35 are respectively connected. The air conditioning controller 50 executes predetermined processing based on the input signals from these, and outputs control signals to the door actuators 91a, 92a, 93a, 26a, 35a, 37a as follows.
[0020]
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of processing related to the air outlet control executed in the air conditioning controller 50. First, the current air conditioning mode is determined in step S1. The air conditioning mode is set according to the target air mix door opening when the automatic air conditioner is activated. That is, as the target air mix door opening calculated based on the input signal from the sensor 51 or the like increases, the air conditioning mode is set in the order of vent mode → bilevel mode → foot mode. On the other hand, when the mode switch 53 is operated, the air conditioning mode is set to the vent mode, the bi-level mode, or the foot mode according to the operation, and when the differential switch 54 is operated, the differential mode is set.
[0021]
If the vent mode is determined in step S1, the process proceeds to step S2, where control signals are output to the actuators 91a to 93a, the vent door 91 is opened, and the foot door 92 and the differential door 93 are closed. Next, in step S3, the operation of the second door switch 55 is determined. If it is determined that the switch is on, the process proceeds to step S4, where a control signal is output to the actuator 26a to open the second door 26. If it is determined that the switch is off, the process proceeds to step S5, where a control signal is output to the actuator 26a to close the second door 26. In the next step S6, the operation of the third switch 56 is determined. If it is determined that the switch is on, the process proceeds to step S7, where a control signal is output to the actuator 35a to open the third door 35. If it is determined that the switch is off, the process proceeds to step S8, where a control signal is output to the actuator 35a to close the third door 35. Next, in step S9, a control signal is output to the actuator 37a to rotate the switching door 37 to the b position. When the differential mode is determined in step S1, the process proceeds to step S10 to output a control signal to the actuators 91a to 93a, the differential door 93 is opened, and the vent door 91 and the foot door 92 are closed. Next, the process proceeds to step S9.
[0022]
On the other hand, if the foot mode is determined in step S1, the process proceeds to step S11 to output a control signal to the actuators 91a to 93a, the foot door 92 is opened, and the vent door 91 and the differential door 93 are closed. If the bi-level mode is determined in step S1, the process proceeds to step S12 to output a control signal to the actuators 91a to 93a, the vent door 91 and the foot door 92 are opened, and the differential 93 is closed. When the processing of step S11 and step S12 is completed, the process proceeds to step S13, a control signal is output to the actuator 37a, and the switching door 37 is rotated to the position a.
[0023]
Next, a characteristic operation of the present embodiment will be described.
(1) Vent mode For example, when the target air mix door opening is on the cool side, the air conditioning controller 50 selects the vent mode. As a result, the vent door 91 is opened, and the foot door 92 and the differential door 93 are closed (step S2). Therefore, the relatively cold conditioned air generated by the air conditioning unit 100 is guided to the front vent outlet 11 through the front vent duct 12 and is blown from the outlet 11 toward the upper body of the first row passengers. At this time, when the second door switch 55 is turned on, the second door 26 is opened (step S4), and the blower fan 25 is driven in conjunction with this. Thus, the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit is guided to the second vent outlet 21 via the second vent duct 22 and is blown vigorously from the outlet 21 toward the second row passengers.
[0024]
In the vent mode, the switching door 37 is switched to the position b, the third foot outlet 33 communicates with the suction duct 36, and the communication between the third foot outlet 33 and the air mix chamber 8 is blocked (step S9). When the third door switch 56 is turned on, the third door 35 is opened (step S7). As a result, the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit 100 is guided to the third vent outlet 31 via the third vent duct 32 and is blown from the outlet 31 toward the rear and obliquely upward of the vehicle. At this time, the air behind the passenger compartment is sucked into the third foot duct 34 from the third foot outlet 33 by the rotation of the blower fan 4 and led into the inside air suction duct 61. Thereby, since air circulates the whole vehicle interior, the residence of the air near a 3rd seat is eased. As a result, the conditioned air from the third vent outlet 31 is smoothly guided to the third seat between the driver seat and the passenger seat and above the second seat 20, and the conditioned air can be directly blown to the third row passengers. . In the differential mode, the switching door 37 is switched to the position b, and air is sucked from the third foot outlet 33 in the same manner.
[0025]
(2) Foot mode For example, when the target air mix door opening is on the hot side, the air conditioning controller 50 selects the foot mode. As a result, the foot door 92 is opened and the vent door 91 and the differential door 93 are closed (step S11). Accordingly, the relatively warm conditioned air generated by the air conditioning unit 100 is guided to the front foot outlet 13 and the second foot outlet 23 through the front foot duct 14 and the second foot duct 24, respectively, and 1 from the outlets 13 and 14, respectively. The air is blown toward the feet of the row and second row occupants.
[0026]
In the foot mode, the switching door 37 is switched to the position a, the third foot outlet 33 communicates with the air mix chamber 8, and the communication between the third foot outlet 33 and the suction duct 36 is blocked (step S13). Therefore, the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit 100 is guided to the third foot outlet 33 via the third foot duct 34 and is blown from the outlet 33 toward the feet of the third row passengers. As a result, the entire passenger compartment is warmed, and the passenger's feeling of heating is improved. Even in the bi-level mode, the communication between the third foot outlet 33 and the suction duct 36 is blocked (step S13), so that the cabin air is not sucked from the third foot outlet 33.
[0027]
According to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) A suction duct 36 is branched from the third foot duct 34 connecting the heater unit 101 and the third foot outlet 33, and the tip of the suction duct 36 is connected to an internal air suction duct 61 upstream of the blower fan. A switching door 37 is provided at a branch portion of the third foot duct 34, and the switching door 37 is switched to the b position in the air conditioning mode in which there is no air blowing from the third foot air outlet 33, that is, the vent mode and the differential mode, and the third foot air outlet 33 and the suction port The duct 36 was connected, and the third foot outlet 33 and the heater unit 101 were shut off. As a result, the air behind the vehicle interior is sucked into the blow-acringing unit 102 from the third foot outlet 33, and the air circulates throughout the vehicle interior. Therefore, the stagnation of air behind the passenger compartment is prevented, and the conditioned air from the third vent outlet 31 can be smoothly guided to the third row passengers, thereby improving the air conditioning comfort.
(2) In the air-conditioning mode in which air is blown from the third foot outlet 33, that is, the foot mode and the bi-level mode, the switching door 37 is switched to the position a, and the third foot outlet 33 and the heater unit 101 are communicated. Since the outlet 33 and the suction duct 36 are blocked, the conditioned air is blown from the third vent outlet 33. Thereby, the third vent outlet 33 can be used as an air inlet outlet and an air outlet. As a result, there is no need to separately provide an air suction outlet, and an increase in the number of parts can be suppressed.
(3) Since the third vent air outlet 31 is provided in the instrument panel IP so that the conditioned air from the third vent air outlet 31 passes through the upper part of the vehicle interior and reaches the third seat 30, the conditioned air is given to the third row passengers. Therefore, there is no need to provide a separate rear air conditioner for the application, cost increase can be suppressed, and the living space can be widened.
(4) Since the second vent air outlet 21 is provided facing the second seat 20 and the blower fan 25 is provided in the middle of the second vent duct 22, the second vent air outlet is vigorously supplied from the air conditioning unit 100. The air conditioning comfort of the second row passengers is improved.
(5) Since the second vent duct 22 and the third vent duct 32 are provided with the second door 26 and the third door 35 that can be opened and closed, respectively, the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit can be blown toward the first row passengers. This is effective when there are passengers only on the seat.
(6) Since the blower fan 25 is driven in conjunction with the opening operation of the second door 26, unnecessary driving of the fan 25 can be prevented.
[0028]
In the above embodiment, the switching door 37 is switched to the b position in the vent mode and the differential mode. However, the switching door 37 may be switched to the b position only in the vent mode. Further, when the third door switch 55 is turned on in the vent mode, the switching door 37 may be switched to the b position. Although the switching door 37 is provided at the branch portion of the third foot duct 34, a pair of switching doors may be provided on the upstream side (heater unit 101 side) of the branch portion of the third foot duct 34 and the suction duct 36, respectively.
[0029]
Although the air-conditioning controller 50 sets the air-conditioning mode as the mode setting means, an air-conditioning mode other than those described above (for example, a differential foot mode) may be set. Similarly to the foot mode, the differential foot mode is an air-conditioning mode in which air is blown from the third foot outlet 33. Therefore, the switching door 37 may be switched to the position a in the differential foot mode. Although the actuator 37a is used as the door switching means, the switching door 37 and the vent door 91 may be connected via a link, and the switching door 37 may be switched in conjunction with the operation of the vent door 91.
[0030]
Although the said embodiment was applied to the vehicle which has a 3 row seat, it can be applied similarly to the vehicle which has a 2 row seat. In this case, the third vent outlet 31 and the third foot outlet 33 are provided so as to face the second row passengers, and the second vent outlet 23 and the second foot outlet 23 may be omitted. Although air is blown from the third vent outlet 33 toward the third sheet 30, air may be blown toward the third sheet 30 from another outlet. Also in this case, since air circulates through the vehicle interior by suction from the third foot outlet 33, the third seat 30 can be easily blown.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a side view of an essential part of a vehicle having a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG.
3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a vehicle air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a detailed shape of a connection portion between a third foot duct and an air conditioning unit.
FIG. 6 is a block diagram relating to air outlet control of the vehicle air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of processing related to air outlet control of the vehicle air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
4 Blower fan 10 Front seat 11 Front vent outlet 12 Front vent duct 20 Second seat 21 Second vent outlet 22 Second vent duct 25 Blower fan 30 Third seat 31 Third vent outlet 32 Third vent duct 36 Suction duct 37 Switching door 37a Switching Door actuator 50 Air conditioning controller 100 Air conditioning unit 101 Heater unit 102 Blow axing unit IP Instrument panel

Claims (3)

A vehicle air conditioner mounted on a vehicle having a front seat, a second seat, and a third seat arranged in the vehicle longitudinal direction,
  An air conditioning unit that generates conditioned air at a predetermined temperature from the air sucked by the blower fan;
  A vent outlet provided in the instrument panel;
  A vent duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the vent outlet, so that the conditioned air is blown from the vent outlet to the rear of the vehicle interior;
  A third foot outlet provided facing the foot of the third seat;
  A third foot duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the third foot outlet so that the conditioned air is blown from the third foot outlet toward the foot of the third seat;
  A suction duct branched from the third foot duct and connected to an internal air suction duct on the upstream side of the blower fan;
  The third foot outlet and the air conditioning unit or the inside air suction duct are arranged so that conditioned air can be blown out from the rear foot outlet or air in the vehicle compartment can be drawn from the rear foot outlet. A switching door that communicates alternatively,
  Mode setting means for setting the air conditioning mode;
  When the air conditioning mode for blowing air from the third foot outlet is set by the mode setting means, the air conditioning unit is connected to the third foot outlet and the air conditioning mode for not sending air from the third foot outlet is set. A vehicle air conditioner comprising door switching means for switching the switching door so as to communicate the third foot outlet and the inside air suction duct. In the vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1,
  The vent outlet has a front vent outlet and a third vent outlet,
  The vent duct includes a front vent duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the front vent outlet so that the conditioned air is blown from the front vent outlet to the front seat, and the conditioned air is supplied to the third vent outlet. A vehicle air conditioner comprising: a third vent duct that guides the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the third vent outlet so as to be blown to the third seat from the outlet through the vehicle interior. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 or 2,
  A second vent outlet provided facing the second seat;
  A second vent duct for guiding the conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the second vent outlet so that the conditioned air is blown from the second vent outlet to the second seat;
  A vehicle air conditioner further comprising a second fan that is provided between the air conditioning unit and the second vent outlet and blows conditioned air from the air conditioning unit to the second vent outlet.

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