Air conditioning system and method for controlling air conditioning system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10215427-B2
Application number	US-201414781377-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 1, 2014
Priority date	Apr 1, 2013
Publication date	Feb 26, 2019
Grant date	Feb 26, 2019

Abstract

An air conditioning system ( 1 ) includes an outdoor subsystem, an indoor subsystem and a power module ( 3 ) for driving a cooling medium. The outdoor subsystem is configured with a plurality of parallel branches ( 4 ) and said branches ( 4 ) comprise a branch inlet and a branch outlet, each branch ( 4 ) is configured with an outdoor unit ( 5 ) and a first control valve ( 6 ). The air conditioning system includes a controller ( 7 ), a first pressure sensor ( 8 ) and a second pressure sensor ( 9 ), the controller ( 7 ) comprises a first pressure difference determination module that communicates with the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor, and a first control module of the first pressure difference that communicates with the first pressure difference determination module and the first control valve ( 4 ), where the first pressure difference determination module determines the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An air conditioning system, which comprises an outdoor subsystem, an indoor subsystem and a power module for driving a cooling medium, wherein the outdoor subsystem is configured with a plurality of parallel branches and said branches comprise a branch inlet and a branch outlet, wherein the cooling medium flows into the indoor subsystem through the power module and the outdoor subsystem, performs heat exchange with the indoor air in an indoor unit of the indoor subsystem, and subsequently returns to an outdoor unit of the outdoor subsystem through the power module for heat exchange, thereby forming a circulation of the cooling medium, wherein:
each branch is configured with an outdoor unit and a first control valve, the air conditioning system further comprises a controller, a first pressure sensor for measuring a pressure at the branch inlet and a second pressure sensor for measuring the pressure at the branch outlet, the controller comprises a first pressure difference determination module that communicates with the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor, and a first control module that communicates with the first pressure difference determination module and the first control valve, wherein the first pressure difference determination module receives the pressure at the branch inlet and the pressure at the branch outlet from the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor, and determines the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches.

2. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is greater than a first predetermined value, then the first control module of the first pressure difference instructs to increase an amount of the first control valves that are open; and/or
when the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is between the first predetermined value and a second predetermined value, then the first control module of the first pressure difference instructs to regulate the flow rate of the cooling medium in the air conditioning system, and/or;
when the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is smaller than the second predetermined value, then the first control module of the first pressure difference instructs to decrease the amount of the first control valves that are open;
wherein the first predetermined value is greater than the second predetermined value.

3. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the power module further comprises a variable frequency pump for regulating the flow rate of the cooling medium, and the controller further comprises a second control module of the first pressure difference that communicates with the variable frequency pump and the first pressure difference determination module.

4. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 3 , wherein
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is greater than a third predetermined value, then the second control module of the first pressure difference instructs to decrease the flow rate of the variable frequency pump; and/or
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is smaller than a fourth predetermined value, then the second control module of the first pressure difference instructs to increase the flow rate of the variable frequency pump; and/or
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the branches measured by the first pressure difference determination module is between the third predetermined value and the fourth predetermined value, then the second control module of the first pressure difference instructs to keep the flow rate of the variable frequency pump constant;
wherein the third predetermined value is greater than the fourth predetermined value, the third predetermined value is smaller than the first predetermined value, and the fourth predetermined value is greater than the second predetermined value.

5. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 4 , wherein
a second control valve is disposed on the bypass formed between the inlet and the outlet of the indoor subsystem, the air conditioning system further comprises a third pressure sensor for measuring the inlet pressure of the indoor subsystem and a fourth pressure sensor for measuring the outlet pressure of the indoor subsystem, the controller comprises a second pressure difference determination module that communicates with the third pressure sensor and the fourth pressure sensor, the second pressure difference determination module receives the inlet pressure and the outlet pressure of the indoor subsystem from the third pressure sensor and the fourth pressure sensor, and determines the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the indoor subsystem, and the controller further comprises a second pressure difference control module that communicates with the second control valve and the second pressure difference determination module.

6. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 5 , wherein
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the indoor subsystem measured by the second pressure difference determination module is greater than a fifth predetermined value, then the second pressure difference control module instructs to increase the opening degree of the second control valve; and/or
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the indoor subsystem measured by the second pressure difference determination module is smaller than a sixth predetermined value, then the second pressure difference control module instructs to decrease the opening degree of the second control valve, and/or
the pressure difference between the outlet and the inlet of the indoor subsystem measured by the second pressure difference determination module is between the fifth predetermined value and the sixth predetermined value, then the second pressure difference control module instructs to keep the opening degree of the second control valve unchanged;
wherein the fifth predetermined value is greater than the sixth predetermined value.

7. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the first control valve is a solenoid valve.

8. The air conditioning system as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the cooling medium is cooling water.

Assignees

• Carrier Corp

Inventors

• Lu Qing
• Shen Guangyu

Classifications

• F25B23/006 Primary

  boiling cooling systems · CPC title

• F24F5/0003

  Exclusively-fluid systems · CPC title

• F24F3/08 Primary

  with separate supply and return lines for hot and cold heat-exchange fluids {i.e. so-called "4-conduit" system} · CPC title

• F24F2140/12

  Heat-exchange fluid pressure · CPC title

• F24F11/83

  by controlling the supply of heat-exchange fluids to heat-exchangers · CPC title