Defrosting control device, air conditioner and defrosting control method therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11584192-B2
Application number	US-201816642753-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 17, 2018
Priority date	Nov 8, 2017
Publication date	Feb 21, 2023
Grant date	Feb 21, 2023

Abstract

Provided are a defrosting control device, an air conditioner and a defrosting control method therefor. The device includes an airbag device, wherein the airbag device includes a mounting support ( 1 ), an airbag ( 2 ) and an inflation mechanism. When an air conditioner to be controlled enters a defrosting mode, the inflation mechanism inflates the airbag ( 2 ) such that same forms an airbag layer to isolate an outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner to be controlled from flowing air outside the outdoor heat exchanger. The defrosting control device can achieve the beneficial effects of a small defrosting heat loss, a good defrosting effect and a good user experience.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device for defrosting an air conditioner, comprising:
an airbag;
an air pipe connected to the airbag, the air pipe comprising a first opening, a second opening, and a third opening; and
an air pump; wherein
the device is configured to form an airbag layer by the airbag to isolate an outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner to be controlled from flowing air outside the outdoor heat exchanger, and
the first opening is configured to connect to an air exhaust end of the air pump and the second opening is configured to connect to a control valve; and the third opening of the air pipe is configured to connect to an opening of the airbag.

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the device is further configured to deflate the airbag layer when the air conditioner to be controlled does not enter the defrosting mode or exits the defrosting mode,
wherein,
the air conditioner to be controlled comprises a heat-pump automobile air conditioner; and
the flowing air outside the outdoor heat exchanger comprises flowing air in a front of an automobile on which the heat-pump automobile air conditioner is mounted.

3. The device according to claim 1 , wherein,
the air conditioner to be controlled comprises a heat-pump automobile air conditioner;
the airbag is arranged outside the outdoor heat exchanger; wherein, the airbag is arranged in an air-inlet grille in a front of an automobile on which the heat-pump automobile air conditioner is mounted;
the air pump is communicated with the airbag and configured to, when the air conditioner to be controlled enters a defrosting mode, inflate the airbag so that the airbag forms the airbag layer;
when the device is further configured to deflate the airbag layer when the air conditioner to be controlled does not enter the defrosting mode or exits the defrosting mode,
the air pump is further configured to: maintain the airbag in a non-inflated state or collapsed state so that the airbag deflates the airbag layer, when the air conditioner to be controlled does not enter the defrosting mode; and
deflate the airbag so that the airbag deflates the airbag layer, when the air conditioner to be controlled exits the defrosting mode.

4. The device according to claim 3 , wherein,
the air pump is configured to:
rotate in a set inflation direction to inflate the airbag, when the air conditioner to be controlled enters the defrosting mode;
stop rotating to maintain the airbag in the non-inflated state or collapsed state, when the air conditioner to be controlled does not enter the defrosting mode; and
rotate in a set deflation direction to take air away from the airbag so as to deflate the airbag, when the air conditioner to be controlled exits the defrosting mode.

5. The device according to claim 4 , further comprising the control valve, wherein the control valve is mounted at the second opening of the air pipe and configured to control the second opening; when the air conditioner to be controlled enters the defrosting mode and the air pump rotates in the inflation direction, the second opening is closed, so that the air pump inflates the airbag in the case where the second opening is closed;
when the air conditioner to be controlled does not enter the defrosting mode and the air pump does not rotate, the second opening is opened to maintain the airbag in the non-inflated state or collapsed state;
when the air conditioner to be controlled exits the defrosting mode and the air pump rotates in the deflation direction, the second opening is closed so that the air pump deflates the airbag; and
when the air conditioner to be controlled exits the defrosting mode and the air pump stops rotating, the second opening is opened to deflate the airbag through the second opening under the pressure of the outside flowing air.

6. The device according to claim 4 , wherein,
a number of the airbag is more than one;
a number of branches is matched with the number of the airbags, and each of the branches is communicated with an opening end of each of the airbags;
a wall of the each of the airbags comprises an elastic layer made of an elastic material, wherein the elastic material comprises natural latex;
the deflation direction comprises a direction opposite to the inflation direction;
an air pressure at the air exhaust end of the air pump is greater than a sum of a contraction force of the each of the airbags and a wind pressure applied to outer surfaces of each of the airbags; and
the control valve comprises an air exhaust valve, and the air exhaust valve comprises at least one of a solenoid valve and a pneumatic valve, wherein the solenoid valve comprises a normally-open solenoid valve.

7. The device according to claim 3 , wherein the device further comprises a mounting support;
the mounting support is mounted outside the outdoor heat exchanger and is configured to mount the airbag, wherein the mounting support is mounted in the front of the outdoor heat exchanger of the heat-pump automobile air conditioner.

8. The device according to claim 7 , wherein the mounting support further comprises
a plurality of positioning rods; and
adjacent two of the plurality of positioning rods are respectively arranged at two ends of the airbag, to position the airbag between the adjacent two of the plurality of positioning rods.

9. The device according to claim 8 , wherein the mounting support further comprises a support rod; and
the airbag is arranged above and/or below the support rod, and/or sheathed on an outer periphery of the support rod.

10. The device according to claim 9 , wherein,
the mounting support can be mounted in at least one of a horizontal direction, a vertical direction and an inclined direction, wherein,
when the mounting support is mounted in the horizontal direction, the positioning rods comprise a first vertical rod, and the support rod comprises a first horizontal rod;
when the mounting support is mounted in the vertical direction, the positioning rods comprise a second horizontal rod, and the support rod comprises a second vertical rod;
when the airbag is arranged above and/or below the support rod, a structure of the airbag comprises an integral structure and/or a socketed structure that is adhered and/or hung to the support rod;
when the airbag is sheathed on the outer periphery of the support rod, the structure of the airbag comprises a socketed structure that is sheathed on the support rod through a middle through hole disposed on an interior of the airbag axially formed thereon;
wherein,
the shape of the middle through hole is matched with that of the air-inlet grille and can be adjusted according to the shape of the air-inlet grille; and
a shape of a radial cross-section of the socketed structure comprises at least one of a circular ring, a rectangular ring, and an arc-shaped ring with a set radian on its surface, wherein,
when the shape of the radial cross-section comprises a circular ring, the airbag comprises an annular airbag; and
when the shape of the radial cross-section comprises a rectangular ring, the airbag comprises a rectangular airbag.

11. An air conditioner, comprising the device according to claim 1 .

12. A defrosting control method for the air conditioner according to claim 11 , comprising a step of:
by the device, forming the airbag layer when the air conditioner to be controlled enters a defrosting mode, to isolate an outdoor heat exchanger of the air conditioner to be controlled from flowing air outside the outdoor heat exchanger.

13. The method according to claim 12 , further comprising a step of:
by the device, deflating the airbag layer

Assignees

• Gree Electric Appliances Wuhan Co Ltd
• Gree Electric Appliances Inc Zhuhai

Inventors

• Guo Aibin
• Wu Huili
• Wang Zhe

Classifications

• B60H2001/00961

  comprising means for defrosting outside heat exchangers · CPC title

• B60H1/00785 Primary

  by the detection of humidity or frost · CPC title

• B60H1/00899

  Controlling the flow of liquid in a heat pump system (controlling the properties of the refrigerant liquid, e.g. pressure or temperature, B60H1/3204) · CPC title

• B60H1/00507 Primary

  Details, e.g. mounting arrangements, desaeration devices (B60H1/32 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B60H1/00428

  electric · CPC title