Vehicular air-conditioning device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9797641-B2
Application number	US-201414890520-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 27, 2014
Priority date	May 28, 2013
Publication date	Oct 24, 2017
Grant date	Oct 24, 2017

Abstract

There is disclosed an air-conditioning device of a so-called heat pump system which acquires comfortable heating in a vehicle interior by preventing or inhibiting frost formation to an outdoor heat exchanger. In a vehicular air-conditioning device 1 , a controller calculates a requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt which is a refrigerant evaporation temperature of an outdoor heat exchanger 7 when a required heating capability Qtgt as a heating capability required for a radiator 4 is realized in non-frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger 7 , and the controller controls heating by the radiator 4 and heating by a heating medium-air heat exchanger 40 of a heating medium circulating circuit 23 on the basis of the requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt and a frost point Tfrost to achieve the required heating capability Qtgt without causing frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger 7.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicular air-conditioning device comprising:
a compressor which compresses a refrigerant;
an air flow passage through which air to be supplied into a vehicle interior flows;
a radiator which lets the refrigerant radiate heat to heat the air to be supplied from the air flow passage into the vehicle interior;
a heat absorber which lets the refrigerant absorb heat to cool the air to be supplied from the air flow passage into the vehicle interior;
an outdoor heat exchanger disposed outside the vehicle interior to let the refrigerant radiate or absorb heat; and
control means,
the control means being configured to execute at least a heating mode in which the refrigerant discharged from the compressor radiates heat in the radiator and the refrigerant by which heat has been radiated is decompressed and then absorbs heat in the outdoor heat exchanger,
the vehicular air-conditioning device comprising:
auxiliary heating means for heating the air to be supplied from the air flow passage into the vehicle interior,
wherein the control means calculates a requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt which is a refrigerant evaporation temperature of the outdoor heat exchanger when a required heating capability Qtgt as a heating capability required for the radiator is realized in non-frosting of the outdoor heat exchanger, and the control means controls the heating by the radiator and the heating by the auxiliary heating means on the basis of the requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt and a frost point Tfrost to achieve the required heating capability Qtgt without causing frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger.

2. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control means calculates the requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt on the basis of an outdoor air temperature and the required heating capability Qtgt.

3. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control means calculates a maximum heating capability predicted value without frosting QmaxNfst which is a target value of a maximum heating capability to be generated by the radiator in a range in which the outdoor heat exchanger is not frosted, and
the control means defines a target heating capability TGQhp of the radiator as the maximum heating capability predicted value without frosting QmaxNfst, and complements a shortage of the maximum heating capability predicted value without frosting QmaxNfst to the required heating capability Qtgt by the heating by the auxiliary heating means, when the requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt is lower than the frost point Tfrost or a temperature close to the frost point.

4. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 3 ,
wherein the control means calculates the maximum heating capability predicted value without frosting QmaxNfst on the basis of the frost point Tfrost or the temperature close to the frost point and an outdoor air temperature.

5. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control means defines the target heating capability TGQhp of the radiator as the required heating capability Qtgt, and stops the heating by the auxiliary heating means, when the requested refrigerant evaporation temperature in non-frosting TXObaseQtgt is the frost point Tfrost or a temperature close to the frost point, or more.

6. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control means executes the control immediately after startup.

7. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the control means has frost formation condition estimating means for estimating a frost formation condition to the outdoor heat exchanger, and the control means executes the heating by the auxiliary heating means, when the frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger occurs or when the frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger is predicted on the basis of the estimation of the frost formation condition estimating means in a case where it is not immediately after the startup.

8. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 7 ,
wherein the control means calculates a target heating capability TGQech of the auxiliary heating means for inhibiting or preventing the frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger on the basis of a degree of the frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger, and
obtains a value of the target heating capability TGQhp of the radiator by subtracting the target heating capability TGQech of the auxiliary heating means from the required heating capability Qtgt.

9. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 8 ,
wherein the control means stops an operation of the compressor, when the target heating capability TGQhp of the radiator is smaller than a predetermined value.

10. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 7 ,
wherein the control means lowers the heating by the auxiliary heating means gradually or in stages and finally stops the heating, when it is estimated that the outdoor heat exchanger is not frosted on the basis of the estimation of the frost formation condition estimating means.

11. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 7 ,
wherein the control means estimates the frost formation condition or the degree of the frost formation to the outdoor heat exchanger on the basis of the frost point Tfrost and a refrigerant evaporation temperature TXO of the outdoor heat exchanger.

12. The vehicular air-conditioning device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the auxiliary heating means is constituted of a heating medium circulating circuit which has a heating medium-air heat exchanger to heat the air to be supplied from the air flow passage into the vehicle interior, an electric heater and circulating means and which circulates a heating medium heated by the electric heater through the heating medium-air heat exchanger by the circulating means.

Assignees

• Sanden Holdings Corp

Inventors

• Suzuki Kenichi
• Miyakoshi Ryo

Classifications

• F25B2700/2106

  of fresh outdoor air · CPC title

• F25B49/02 Primary

  for compression type machines, plants or systems · CPC title

• B60H1/00921

  where the flow direction of the refrigerant does not change and there is an extra subcondenser, e.g. in an air duct · CPC title

• F25B2700/21161

  of the fluid heated by the condenser · CPC title

• F25B47/022

  hot gas defrosting · CPC title