JPH06265197A - Transmitter of multiple room type air conditioner - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] Automatically determine the refrigerant system with a simple and inexpensive configuration. [Structure] A switch 2j is provided at a location of each refrigerant distribution unit of a common bus line 1 which connects an outdoor unit Ai, a refrigerant distribution unit Bj, an indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling, and an indoor unit Ck also used for cooling and heating. With the bus line manager 3, with all switches open, all refrigerant distribution units and indoor units dedicated to cooling are set with temporary addresses and then closed. The on-off valves of all refrigerant distribution units are closed, the expansion valves of all indoor units are fully opened, the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit Ai is started, and the refrigerant circulation is detected by the detection signal of the heat exchanger temperature sensor of each indoor unit. After the presence or absence is judged and the address of the indoor unit dedicated to cooling which is judged to be present is reset, the expansion valve of the indoor unit is fully closed. During the operation of the i-th outdoor unit, the opening / closing valve of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj is opened, the presence / absence of refrigerant circulation is similarly determined, and the address of the indoor unit for both heating and cooling determined to be present is set, and j
After resetting the address of the second refrigerant distribution unit, close its on-off valve.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multi-chamber system in which a plurality of outdoor units and indoor units connected to each other by refrigerant pipes are connected to each other by a common bus line for control, and a refrigerant system can be automatically discriminated. Type air conditioner transmission device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a transmission device of a multi-room type air conditioner, for example, one shown in FIG. 4 has been known. This multi-room air conditioner is of the cooling / heating fixed operation type that operates in the same mode of cooling or heating within the system belonging to the same outdoor unit, and has a built-in compressor, outdoor heat exchanger, outdoor expansion valve, etc. The three outdoor units A ₁ , A ₂ , A ₃ and the outdoor units Ai (i
= 1 to 3) in parallel via the liquid and gas refrigerant pipes Pi, and an indoor unit Cj (j =
1-9) and. The transmission device connects all the outdoor units Ai and the indoor units Cj to each other via a common bus line 11 for control, and the common bus line 11 is provided with a central controller 12 for a user to input a command. Become. Such common bus line type transmission equipment makes it easy to install outdoor units, wiring is easy, and cost can be reduced by reducing wiring and unifying transmission ports. Since it has advantages such as centralized control of all air conditioners at the same time, it is widely used in multi-room air conditioners such as buildings.

However, in the common bus line type transmission device, unlike the case of a system consisting of two systems of internal and external transmission and centralized transmission, it is necessary to know the mutual connection condition of all outdoor units and indoor units, that is, the refrigerant system. However, there is a problem that each air conditioner cannot operate normally. Therefore, in order to solve this problem, in the multi-room air conditioner (cooling and heating fixed operation type), after installing the refrigerant piping system and the common bus line type transmission system in an arbitrary combination in a building, etc., The refrigerant system is automatically identified by various methods. That is, a specific outdoor unit as a master unit, for example, the outdoor unit A _{1 is made} to have the function of the bus line manager, and this outdoor unit A ₁ issues an operation start command to the i-th (i = 1) outdoor unit A i, The expansion valve full open command is sent to all the indoor units Cj (j = 1 to 9), and after a predetermined time, the outdoor units Ai
When the refrigerant starts to circulate when the compressor is started, each indoor unit Cj
When the rate of change of the detection signal of the temperature sensor provided in the indoor heat exchanger is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, it is determined that there is refrigerant circulation, and the outdoor unit A
_A signal is sent to ₁ , and based on this signal, the outdoor unit A ₁ gives the indoor unit a serial number indicating that it belongs to the refrigerant system of the i-th outdoor unit Ai, that is, performs automatic address setting. Then, the above-described processing is repeated in order of the (i + 1) th outdoor unit, the (i + 2) th outdoor unit, and so on until the last outdoor unit, so that all refrigerant systems are automatically determined. is there.

[0004]

On the other hand, in addition to the cooling / heating fixed operation type described above, a multi-room air conditioner of simultaneous cooling / heating operation type has been proposed by the present applicant. This multi-chamber air conditioner has three refrigerant pipes, a common liquid pipe, a discharge pipe, and a suction pipe, from an outdoor unit that incorporates a compressor, an outdoor heat exchanger, a fan, etc. A plurality of indoor units are connected in parallel to the above-mentioned three refrigerant pipes via a refrigerant distribution unit having a bifurcated pipe and a liquid straight pipe. When the on-off valve connected to the discharge pipe of the bifurcated pipe of the refrigerant distribution unit is closed, the refrigerant flows from the liquid pipe toward the suction pipe through the indoor heat exchanger, while the indoor unit is being cooled, When the on-off valve connected to the suction pipe of the bifurcated pipe is closed, the refrigerant flows through the indoor heat exchanger in the opposite direction to the above, and the indoor unit is heated.

However, since the conventional multi-room type air conditioner described in FIG. 4 is of a cooling / heating fixed operation type, cooling is performed in one indoor unit group connected to the same outdoor unit, and in another indoor unit group. The above-mentioned simultaneous cooling and heating type that performs heating at the same time,
There is a problem that it cannot be applied immediately. That is, if all the refrigerant distribution units are opened to either the cooling or heating side, and the outdoor units are sequentially started in the same manner as in the case of the cooling / heating fixed operation type described above, the indoor units can be associated with the outdoor units. The refrigerant distribution units located between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit cannot be associated with each other, and the operator must open and close each refrigerant distribution unit manually. Therefore, there is a disadvantage that determination of the refrigerant system takes time and effort.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to utilize a temperature sensor of an indoor heat exchanger for refrigerant detection and to open and close a common bus line, which is an electric system, at a refrigerant distribution unit.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a transmission device which can automatically determine the refrigerant system of a simultaneous cooling / heating simultaneous multi-chamber air conditioner with a simple and inexpensive configuration.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the first transmission device of the multi-room air conditioner of the present invention comprises:
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the refrigerant pipe Pi connected to the outdoor unit Ai
Is provided with a refrigerant distribution unit Bj having an on-off valve for switching the flow of the refrigerant on the downstream side between forward and reverse, and cooling and heating having an expansion valve and a heat exchanger temperature sensor on the downstream side of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj. An outdoor unit, a refrigerant distribution unit, and an indoor unit of a multi-room type air conditioner in which a shared indoor unit Ck is connected to each other by a common bus line 1 for control,
The switch 2j, which is provided at the location of each refrigerant distribution unit Bj and opens and closes the common bus line 1 to the indoor unit Ck that also serves as an air conditioner, and the refrigerant piping system are terminated when the multi-room air conditioner is installed. At this time, after setting a temporary address for all the refrigerant distribution units Bj, temporary address setting means 3 for closing all the switches 2j, and all the refrigerant distribution units Bj.
After closing the on-off valve of j, fully opening the expansion valves of all indoor units Ck and starting the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit Ai, open the on-off valve of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj After a lapse of time, the presence or absence of refrigerant circulation is determined based on the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of each indoor unit Ck, and the address of the indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating, which is determined to be present, is set to the i-th outdoor unit Ai.
And the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj are set in association with each other, and the address of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj is set again in association with the i-th outdoor unit Ai by referring to the temporary address. It is characterized in that it is provided with an address setting means 3 for closing the on-off valve of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj.

In the second transmission device of the present invention, an indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is further connected to the refrigerant pipe Pi of the multi-room air conditioner, and the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is also connected. Is a temporary address set by the temporary address setting means 3,
Further, the expansion valve is fully opened by the address setting means 3, and a predetermined time after the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit Ai is started, and the opening / closing valve of any refrigerant distribution unit Bj is opened. At that time, the presence / absence of refrigerant circulation is determined based on the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of each cooling-only indoor unit B'j, and the address of the cooling-only indoor unit B'j determined to be present is set. , The temporary address is referred to, the i-th outdoor unit Ai is associated and reset, and then the indoor unit B'j
The address resetting means 3 for fully closing the expansion valve is further provided.

[0009]

In the multi-room air conditioner according to the first aspect of the invention, the indoor unit Ck for both heating and cooling is connected to the refrigerant pipe Pi connected to the outdoor unit Ai (i = 1 to L) via the refrigerant distribution unit Bj. In the common bus line 1 for control connecting these devices to each other, the indoor unit Ck is provided at the location of each refrigerant distribution unit Bj.
A switch 2j for opening and closing the common bus line 1 going to and from is provided. When the connection of the refrigerant pipes Pi is finished during the installation of this multi-room air conditioner, the temporary address setting means 3 opens all the switches 2j and all the refrigerant distribution units Bj.
After setting the temporary address to, all the switches 2j are closed. Next, the address setting means 3 closes the opening / closing valves of all the refrigerant distribution units Bj, fully opens the expansion valves of all the indoor units Ck, and activates the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit Ai, and then the j-th Open the on-off valve of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj.

Here, the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj is
If it is connected to the i-th outdoor unit Ai, this unit Bj
Refrigerant circulates in the indoor unit Ck connected to, and the detection signal of the heat exchanger temperature sensor changes at a rate of change equal to or higher than a predetermined value, while the indoor unit for cooling and heating, which is downstream of another refrigerant distribution unit, Refrigerant does not circulate. Therefore, the address setting means 3 associates the address of the indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating, to which the sensor whose detection signal changes at a change rate of a predetermined value or more, with the i-th outdoor unit Ai and the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj. After setting and resetting the address of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj in association with the i-th outdoor unit Ai by referring to the temporary address, the opening / closing valve of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj is closed. The above process is sequentially performed for all the outdoor units Ai and the refrigerant distribution units Bj. In this way, the first provisional address of the all-refrigerant distribution unit Bj and the address of the indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating are set to addresses corresponding to the actual connection of the refrigerant pipes Pi, and the automatic determination of the refrigerant system ends. .

In the multi-room air conditioner according to the second aspect of the invention, the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is further connected to the refrigerant pipe Pi, and the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is also the temporary address. A temporary address is set by the setting means 3, and the expansion valve is fully opened by the address setting means 3. Only after a predetermined time has elapsed since the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit Ai was started by the address setting means 3 and at the time when the opening / closing valve of any refrigerant distribution unit Bj is not opened, only the cooling unit directly connected to the compressor is used. Refrigerant circulates only in the indoor unit B'j, and the detection signal of the heat exchanger temperature sensor changes at a rate of change equal to or higher than a predetermined rate as described above, while the indoor unit dedicated to cooling connected to another compressor, Refrigerant does not circulate in the indoor unit for cooling and heating, which is located downstream of the other refrigerant distribution units. Therefore, the address resetting means 3 refers to the address of the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling, to which the sensor whose detection signal changes at a change rate of a predetermined value or more, corresponds to the i-th outdoor unit Ai by referring to the temporary address. After attaching and resetting, the expansion valve of the indoor unit B'j is fully closed. Subsequent processing is the same as the processing by the address setting means described in claim 1, and the address of each indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating is associated with the i-th outdoor unit Ai and the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj. Is set. Therefore, in addition to the first temporary address of all the refrigerant distribution units Bj and the address of the indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating, the first temporary address of all the indoor units dedicated to cooling corresponds to the actual connection of the refrigerant pipe Pi. It is set to the address.

[0012]

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a cooling / heating simultaneous operation type multi-room air conditioner and the transmission device described in claim 2. In this multi-room air conditioner, an outdoor unit Ai is connected to an indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling via a refrigerant pipe Pi, and the refrigerant pipe Pi has a pair of open / close valves and is provided on the downstream side. A plurality of the above-mentioned refrigerant distribution units Bj for switching the flow of the refrigerant between forward and reverse are provided, and a cooling / heating room having a heat exchanger with a temperature sensor and an expansion valve (not shown) is provided on the downstream side of each refrigerant distribution unit Bj. Group i of multiple machines Ck connected in parallel
A plurality of (i = 1 to L). The refrigerant pipe Pi
Consists of a common liquid pipe, a discharge pipe, and a suction pipe.
The indoor unit Ck for both heating and cooling is connected in parallel to this refrigerant pipe via the refrigerant distribution unit Bj, while the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is directly connected to the common liquid pipe and the suction pipe. In the example of FIG. 1, the total number L of the outdoor units Ai is 3, the total number m of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj connected to each of the outdoor units Ai and the indoor unit B′j dedicated to cooling is 3 × L = 9, and 1 is added to the end. One by cooling only the indoor unit _{B '3, B' 6,} B '9 is contiguous, the total number n of the indoor unit Ck heating and cooling combined leading to the refrigerant distribution unit Bj is 2 × L × 3 = 18
Is.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned transmission device is used for all the outdoor units Ai.
And the indoor units B'j (j = 3,6,9), Ck are connected to each other via a common bus line 1 for control, and a centralized controller for the user to input a command to the common bus line 1 (see FIG. 4). Of 12
(See) and a bus line manager 3 which also serves as temporary address setting means, address setting means, and address resetting means, which will be described later, are provided, and each refrigerant distribution unit Bj
A switch 2j for opening and closing the common bus line 1 to the indoor unit Ck is provided at the location (j = 1,2,4,5,7,8). As a temporary address setting means, the bus line manager 3 opens all the switches 2j when the connection of the refrigerant piping system is finished at the time of installation of the device, and all the refrigerant distribution units Bj are opened.
After setting a temporary address to the indoor unit B'j dedicated to
Close all switches 2j. Next, the bus line manager 3 closes the open / close valves of all the refrigerant distribution units Bj and fully opens the expansion valves of all the indoor units B'j, Ck as the address resetting means, and the i-th (i = 1 to L) ) The compressor of the outdoor unit Ai is started, and after a predetermined time, the presence or absence of refrigerant circulation is determined based on the detection signal from the temperature sensor of the heat exchanger of each indoor unit, and the indoor unit B dedicated for cooling is determined to be present. After referring to the temporary address and resetting the address of'j in association with the i-th outdoor unit Ai, the expansion valve of the indoor unit is fully closed. It should be noted that this process is sequentially performed one by one for the first to Lth outdoor units.

Further, the bus line manager 3 is
As the address setting means, when the i-th outdoor unit Ai is in operation, the opening / closing valve of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj is opened, and after a predetermined time, based on the detection signal from the temperature sensor of the heat exchanger of each indoor unit. The presence / absence of refrigerant circulation is determined, and the address of the indoor unit Ck for both heating and cooling determined to be present is reset in association with the i-th outdoor unit Ai and the j-th refrigerant distribution unit Bj, and the j-th refrigerant distribution After the address of the unit Bj is reset by referring to the temporary address in association with the i-th outdoor unit Ai, the opening / closing valve of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj is closed. It should be noted that this processing is sequentially performed one by one for each of the first to mth refrigerant distribution units for each of the first to Lth groups. Here, the presence or absence of refrigerant circulation is determined by the bus line manager 3 based on whether or not the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of the indoor unit changes at a change rate of a predetermined value or more.

The bus line manager 3 of the transmission device having the above configuration controls the multi-room air conditioner in the following manner according to the flowcharts of FIGS. 2 and 3
Shows one flowchart divided into two for convenience of space, and the relationship between steps in both figures is indicated by the symbol A in the figures.
In both figures, the operations of the bus line manager on the left side, the refrigerant distribution unit Bj on the center, and the indoor units B'j, Ck on the right side are shown in chronological order in the vertical direction. Now, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, when the refrigerant pipe system Pi of the multi-room air conditioner and the common bus line 1 are installed in an arbitrary combination in a building or the like, the bus line manager 3 operates as shown in FIG. In step S1, a bus line open command is sent to each refrigerant distribution unit Bj, and the switch 2 of the common bus line 1 is transmitted by the transmission device built in each unit.
With all the switches 2j (j = 1,2,4,5,7,8) open by opening j, all refrigerant distribution units Bj and all indoor units B'j (j = 3 for cooling only) , 6,9) after setting a temporary address,
In step 2, all the switches 2j are closed by the bus line closing command. At this stage, the temporary address does not match the connection mode of the refrigerant system, and there is no addressing difference between the refrigerant distribution unit Bj and the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling.

Next, in steps S3 and S4, the bus line manager 3 sends a start command to start the compressor of the i-th (i ← 1) outdoor unit Ai, and at the same time, in step S13.
Then, a valve closing command is sent to all the refrigerant distribution units Bj (j = 1,
2,4,5,7,8) close the solenoid valve on the high pressure side, which is an on-off valve, and send a valve opening command in step S23 to send all indoor units B'j, Ck (j = 3,6). , 9, k = 1 to 18) fully open the expansion valve.
Then, the cooling only continuous direct the example compressor A ₁ was started 'to _3, as shown in step S5, the refrigerant is circulated after a certain time has elapsed, the indoor unit B' indoor unit B of the heat exchanger ₃ The detection signal of the temperature sensor changes at a rate of change equal to or higher than a predetermined value, while the indoor unit dedicated to cooling connected to other outdoor units and each refrigerant distribution unit Bj (j = 1, 2, 4,5,7,
Refrigerant does not circulate in the indoor unit Ck (k = 1 to 18) for both heating and cooling, which is located downstream of 8). Therefore, in step S24, the bus line manager 3 determines that the refrigerant is circulating in the indoor unit B ′ ₃ to which the temperature sensor whose detection signal rises or falls at a change rate of a predetermined value or more belongs, Step S
25, the address of the indoor unit B ′ ₃ is referred to as the first outdoor unit A ₁ by referring to the temporary address described in step S1.
After resetting, the expansion valve of the indoor unit B ′ ₃ is fully closed in step S26. The process for the indoor unit in which the refrigerant circulation is not detected is performed after step S27.

Further, the bus line manager 3 opens the opening / closing valve of the j-th (j ← 1) refrigerant distribution unit Bj of the temporary address in steps S6 and S14 when the i-th outdoor unit Ai is in operation. Here, for example, when the opening / closing valve of the refrigerant distribution unit B ₁ connected to the compressor A ₁ is opened, the refrigerant circulates in the indoor units C _{1 to} C ₃ that also serve as cooling and heating after a certain time elapses, as shown in step S7. However, the detection signals of the temperature sensors of the heat exchangers of these indoor units change at a rate of change equal to or higher than a predetermined value, while the refrigerant distribution unit connected to another outdoor unit or the refrigerant distribution unit Bj ( Refrigerant does not circulate in the indoor unit Ck (k = 4 to 18) for both heating and cooling, which is downstream of j = 2,4,5,7,8). Therefore, the bus line manager 3, in step S27, the indoor unit C ₁ -C ₃ belonging temperature sensor the detection signal is raised or lowered by a predetermined value or more rate of change, it is determined that the refrigerant is circulated Then, the process proceeds to step S28, and the addresses of these indoor units are set in association with the first outdoor unit A ₁ and the first refrigerant distribution unit B ₁ . The process for the indoor unit in which the refrigerant circulation is not detected is performed in step S6 as shown in step S29.
For the next refrigerant distribution unit, or step S
In step 3, the process is suspended until the process for the next outdoor unit starts.

Then, in step S8, the bus line manager 3 finishes setting the addresses of all the indoor units Ck (eg C _{1 to} C ₃ ) belonging to the j (eg 1) th refrigerant distribution unit Bj. It is judged whether or not it is judged, and only if it is judged as affirmative, the process proceeds to steps S9 and S15, and the refrigerant distribution unit Bj
Of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj after resetting the address of the refrigerant distribution unit Bj by referring to the temporary address described in step S1 in association with the i (for example, 1) th outdoor unit Ai.
Close the on / off valve of. Then, in step S10, a refrigerant distribution unit whose address has not been reset is searched for, and if it is found, j is incremented to (j + 1) to open the opening / closing valve of the next refrigerant distribution unit. It returns to step S6. On the other hand, if it does not exist, step S11.
Proceed to step 1 to determine whether all outdoor units have been processed.If not, increment i to (i + 1) to start the compressor of the next outdoor unit and step. If the process returns to S3 and it is determined to be affirmative, the automatic determination of the refrigerant system ends in step S12.

In the above embodiment, the indoor unit B'j dedicated to cooling is connected to the refrigerant pipe Pi, the bus line manager 3 is set to a temporary address of this indoor unit B'j, and its expansion valve is fully opened. Further, although the address of the indoor unit B'j is reset based on the detection signal of the temperature sensor, these may be omitted and the transmission device according to claim 1 may be used. In the transmission device according to claim 1,
The bus line manager 3 is provided with each refrigerant distribution unit Bj.
Since the automatic address setting of the indoor unit Ck for both cooling and heating is performed in the same manner as described above, the refrigerant system is automatically determined for all the indoor units for both cooling and heating.

As described above, according to the present invention, the heat exchanger temperature sensor of the indoor unit is used, and each switch 2j of the common bus line 1 built in each refrigerant distribution unit Bj is hardware-controlled by the bus line manager 3. It opens and closes to automatically determine all refrigerant systems. Therefore, it can be installed more inexpensively and easily than when the bus line is opened / closed by software, and the refrigerant pipe system Pi of the multi-room type air conditioner of simultaneous cooling / heating operation type in a building and the common bus line 1 which is a transmission system are installed. Regardless of how they are installed in combination, all the refrigerant systems can be automatically determined with a transmission device having a simple and inexpensive structure. Further, it is possible to add an indoor unit or the like by simply expanding the common bus line of the electric system without any troublesome work of the mechanical system such as mounting a pressure switch. The bus line managers serve as a temporary address setting means, address setting means and the address resetting means need not be separately provided as in the embodiment of FIG. 1, for example, the function to the particular outdoor unit such as the outdoor unit A ₁ You may let me have.

[0021]

As is apparent from the above description, in the first transmission device of the present invention, the indoor unit for both heating and cooling is connected to the refrigerant pipe connected to the outdoor unit via the refrigerant distribution unit having the opening / closing valve. In a multi-room type air conditioner consisting of the above, a switch for opening and closing the common bus line to the indoor unit that also serves as cooling and heating is provided at the location of each of the refrigerant distribution units of the control common bus line that connects these devices. On the other hand, by the temporary address setting means, at the end of the connection of the refrigerant piping system, in the state where all the switches are opened, after setting the temporary address to all the refrigerant distribution units, all the switches are closed, and by the address setting means, all the refrigerant is After closing the on-off valve of the distribution unit and fully opening the expansion valves of all indoor units and starting the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit, open the on-off valve of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit, and after each predetermined time The presence / absence of refrigerant circulation is determined based on the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of the internal unit, and the address of the indoor unit for both cooling and heating, which is determined to be present, corresponds to the i-th outdoor unit and the j-th refrigerant distribution unit. After setting and resetting the address of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit by associating it with the i-th outdoor unit by referring to the temporary address, close the on-off valve of the refrigerant distribution unit. Therefore, it is possible to automatically determine the refrigerant system of the simultaneous cooling / heating simultaneous multi-chamber air conditioner with a simple and inexpensive configuration.

In the second transmission device of the present invention, an indoor unit dedicated to cooling is further connected to the refrigerant pipe connected to the outdoor unit, and the temporary address of this indoor unit is also set by the temporary address setting means. The expansion valve of this indoor unit is also fully opened by the address setting means, and by the address resetting means,
Whether or not the refrigerant is circulated is determined based on the detection signal of the temperature sensor at a predetermined time after the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit is started and at the time when the opening / closing valve of any refrigerant distribution unit is not opened. After resetting the address of the indoor unit dedicated to cooling, which is determined to be present, by associating it with the i-th outdoor unit by referring to the temporary address, the expansion valve of that indoor unit is fully closed. Even when the indoor unit dedicated to cooling is directly connected, the refrigerant system of the simultaneous cooling / heating simultaneous operation type multi-room air conditioner can be automatically determined with a simple and inexpensive configuration.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an embodiment of a cooling / heating simultaneous operation type multi-room air conditioner and its transmission device.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a control flow of a bus line manager of the above embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a control flow of the bus line manager following FIG.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing a conventional multi-room air conditioner dedicated to cooling and its transmission device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Common bus line, 2j (j = 1,2,4,5,7,8) ... Switch, 3
… Bus line manager, Ai (i = 1 to 3)… Outdoor unit, Bj
(j = 1,2,4,5,7,8) ... Refrigerant distribution unit, B'j (j = 3,6,9) ...
Indoor unit dedicated to cooling, Ck (k = 1 to 18) ... Indoor unit that also serves as air conditioning.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A refrigerant pipe (Pi) connected to an outdoor unit (Ai),
A refrigerant distribution unit (Bj), which has an on-off valve and switches the flow of refrigerant on the downstream side between forward and reverse, is provided, and an expansion valve and a heat exchanger temperature sensor are provided on the downstream side of this refrigerant distribution unit (Bj). A transmission device in which the outdoor unit, the refrigerant distribution unit, and the indoor unit of the multi-room type air conditioner in which the indoor unit (Ck) for both heating and cooling is connected are connected to each other by a common bus line (1) for control. , A common bus line (1) provided at each of the above-mentioned refrigerant distribution units (Bj) and heading to the indoor unit (Ck) for both heating and cooling
The switch (2j) for opening and closing the switch and the switch (2j) after setting the temporary address to all the refrigerant distribution units (Bj) when the connection of the refrigerant piping system is finished when the multi-room air conditioner is installed. The temporary address setting means (3) for closing all of the air conditioners and the on-off valves of all the refrigerant distribution units (Bj) are closed, and the expansion valves of all the indoor units (Ck) are fully opened to open the i-th outdoor unit (Ai). ), The j-th refrigerant distribution unit (B
The open / close valve of j) is opened, and after a predetermined time, the presence / absence of refrigerant circulation is judged based on the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of each indoor unit (Ck), and the indoor unit for both heating and cooling (C
The address of k) is set in association with the i-th outdoor unit (Ai) and the j-th refrigerant distribution unit (Bj), and the address of the j-th refrigerant distribution unit (Bj) is referred to the temporary address. Then, the multi-chamber type is provided with address setting means (3) for closing the on-off valve of the refrigerant distribution unit (Bj) after resetting in association with the i-th outdoor unit (Ai). Transmission equipment for air conditioners. 2. A refrigerant pipe (Pi) connected to the outdoor unit (Ai)
Further, an indoor unit (B'j) dedicated to cooling is further connected, and the temporary address setting means (3) is an indoor unit dedicated to cooling.
A temporary address is also set in (B'j), and the address setting means (3) is the indoor unit dedicated to the cooling.
The expansion valve of (B'j) is also fully opened, and the opening / closing valve of any refrigerant distribution unit (Bj) after a predetermined time has passed since the compressor of the i-th outdoor unit (Ai) was started. At the time when it is not opened, the presence or absence of refrigerant circulation is judged based on the detection signal from the heat exchanger temperature sensor of each cooling-only indoor unit (B'j), and the cooling-only indoor unit (B Refer to the above temporary address for the address of'j), and the i-th outdoor unit (Ai)
The multi-room air conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising an address resetting means (3) for fully closing the expansion valve of the indoor unit (B'j) after being reset in association with.