U.S. patent application number 11/177311 was filed with the patent office on 2006-01-19 for air-conditioning system.
This patent application is currently assigned to LG Electronics Inc.. Invention is credited to Sang Kyun Baek, Soo Geun Choi.
Application Number | 20060010896 11/177311 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 35597981 |
Filed Date | 2006-01-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060010896 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Choi; Soo Geun ; et
al. |
January 19, 2006 |
Air-conditioning system
Abstract
An air-conditioning system is disclosed, which has an improved
performance. The air-conditioning system includes a cabinet sucking
the indoor air from the front and discharging the conditioned air
to the side, an indoor fan received in the cabinet, and at least
one indoor heat exchanger provided at one side of the indoor fan in
the cabinet to perform heat exchange with the air flowing inside
the cabinet.
Inventors: |
Choi; Soo Geun; (Gimhae-si,
KR) ; Baek; Sang Kyun; (Changwon-si, KR) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BIRCH STEWART KOLASCH & BIRCH
PO BOX 747
FALLS CHURCH
VA
22040-0747
US
|
Assignee: |
LG Electronics Inc.
Seoul
KR
|
Family ID: |
35597981 |
Appl. No.: |
11/177311 |
Filed: |
July 11, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
62/262 ;
62/426 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F24F 1/027 20130101;
F24F 13/20 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
062/262 ;
062/426 |
International
Class: |
F25D 23/12 20060101
F25D023/12; F25D 17/06 20060101 F25D017/06 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jul 12, 2004 |
KR |
P2004-0054083 |
Claims
1. An air-conditioning system comprising: a cabinet sucking the
indoor air from the front and discharging the conditioned air to
the side; an indoor fan received in the cabinet; and at least one
indoor heat exchanger provided at one side of the indoor fan in the
cabinet to perform heat exchange with the air flowing inside the
cabinet.
2. The air-conditioning system of claim 1, wherein the cabinet
includes an indoor chamber that performs heat exchange with the
indoor air, and an outdoor chamber provided at the rear of the
indoor chamber to perform heat exchange with the outdoor air.
3. The air-conditioning system of claim 1, wherein the cabinet
includes at least one or more indoor air outlets formed at at least
one or more sides of the cabinet to discharge the air cooled or
heated by the indoor heat exchanger to the indoor, and an indoor
air inlet formed in a front panel constituting the front surface of
the cabinet to suck the indoor air.
4. The air-conditioning system of claim 3, wherein the indoor air
outlets are respectively formed on left and right sides and an
upper side of the cabinet.
5. The air-conditioning system of claim 3, further comprising an
air guide provided inside the cabinet to communicate with the
indoor air inlet and the indoor air outlets, the air flowing at the
front of the air guide and being discharged to the side of the air
guide.
6. The air-conditioning system of claim 5, wherein the air guide
includes at least one or more exhaust holes formed at at least one
or more sides of the air guide to correspond to the at least one or
more indoor air outlets.
7. The air-conditioning system of claim 6, further comprising an
orifice provided on the front surface of the air guide, having a
path formed toward the front panel.
8. The air-conditioning system of claim 7, wherein the path is
gradually reduced toward the rear.
9. The air-conditioning system of claim 6, wherein the indoor fan
includes a centrifugal fan provided inside the air guide.
10. The air-conditioning system of claim 6, wherein the indoor fan
includes a centrifugal turbo fan provided inside the air guide.
11. The air-conditioning system of claim 3, wherein the indoor air
inlet includes a suction grill provided with a plurality of air
vents.
12. The air-conditioning system of claim 2, further comprising an
air guide provided inside the cabinet to partition the indoor
chamber and the outdoor chamber, guiding air flow inside the indoor
chamber.
13. The air-conditioning system of claim 2, wherein the outdoor
chamber includes an outdoor heat exchanger that performs heat
exchange with the outdoor air, and an outdoor fan that sucks the
outdoor air into the outdoor chamber and discharges the air to the
outdoor.
14. The air-conditioning system of claim 13, wherein the indoor fan
and the outdoor fan are driven by a biaxial motor.
15. The air-conditioning system of claim 1, wherein the cabinet
substantially has a square box shape as it is provided with the
indoor air outlets at left and right sides, respectively.
16. The air-conditioning system of claim 1, wherein the cabinet
substantially has a square box shape as it is provided with the
indoor air outlet at the upper side.
17. The air-conditioning system of claim 1, wherein the indoor heat
exchanger is provided between the front surface of the cabinet and
the indoor fan.
Description
[0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Application
No. 10-2004-0054083, filed on Jul. 12, 2004, which is hereby
incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to an air-conditioning system,
and more particularly, to an air-conditioning system in which an
indoor unit and an outdoor unit are provided in a single body.
[0004] 2. Discussion of the Related Art
[0005] Generally, an air-conditioning system is equipped with a
compressor and a heat exchanger to cool or heat indoor places such
as living places, restaurants, libraries, or offices by flowing a
refrigerant therein. The air-conditioning system is generally
divided into a separate air-conditioning system and an integral
air-conditioning system.
[0006] The separate air-conditioning system includes an indoor unit
provided with a heat exchanger that carries out room cooling or
room heating, an outdoor unit provided with a heat exchanger that
performs heat exchange with the outdoor air, and a refrigerant pipe
that connects the indoor unit with the outdoor unit.
[0007] In the separate air-conditioning system, the indoor unit and
the outdoor unit are separately provided so that the indoor unit is
provided at the indoor and the outdoor unit is provided at the
outdoor.
[0008] The integral air-conditioning system includes an outdoor
unit and an indoor unit formed in a single body without being
separated from each other. The outdoor unit and the indoor unit are
directly provided in a house in a state that they are built in a
wall or hung on a window.
[0009] A related art air-conditioning system will be described with
reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.
[0010] The air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is an
integral type in which an indoor unit that performs heat exchange
with the indoor air and an outdoor unit that performs heat exchange
with the outdoor air are formed in a single body with each
other.
[0011] Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the air-conditioning system
includes a base panel 2 constituting appearance, a frame 4 provided
at the upper portion of the base panel 2, an air guide 6
partitioning the base panel 2 and the frame 4 into an indoor
chamber I and an outdoor chamber O, a front panel 9 arranged on the
front surface of the indoor chamber of the frame 4 to constitute
the front portion of the air-conditioning system, and a compressor
12 varying a gaseous refrigerant of low temperature and low
pressure to one of high temperature and high pressure.
[0012] The outdoor chamber O is provided with a condenser 14 and an
expansion valve (not shown). The condenser 14 discharges heat using
the air flowing inside the outdoor chamber, and the expansion valve
expands the refrigerant condensed by the condenser 14.
[0013] The indoor chamber I is provided with an evaporator 16 that
evaporates the refrigerant expanded by the expansion valve in a gas
state while absorbing heat of the air flowing inside the indoor
chamber.
[0014] Meanwhile, an outdoor inlet 5 is provided at a side and an
upper surface of the outdoor chamber, and a rear surface of the
outdoor chamber is opened to discharge the air to the outdoor.
[0015] An indoor air inlet 10 is formed at the front surface of the
lower portion of the front panel 9, and an indoor air outlet 11 is
formed at the front surface of the upper chamber of the front panel
9 to discharge the air into the indoor.
[0016] The air guide 6 includes a vertical guide 7 vertically
arranged on the upper surface of the base panel 2 and a horizontal
guide 8 horizontally arranged at the upper portion of the vertical
guide 7 to guide the air forcibly flown by an indoor fan 24 to the
indoor air outlet 11.
[0017] The air guide 6 further includes a biaxial motor 22 of which
a front shaft 20a and a rear shaft 20b are respectively extended to
the indoor chamber and the outdoor chamber. The front shaft 20a is
connected with the indoor fan 24 that forcibly circulates the
indoor air toward the evaporator 16. An orifice 26 is provided at
the inlet side of the indoor fan 24 to accelerate wind velocity of
the flowing air.
[0018] The rear shaft 20b is connected with a propeller fan 28 that
forcibly circulates the outdoor air toward the condenser 14. A
shroud 30 is provided at the rear of the propeller fan 28 to form
an air path.
[0019] The operation of the aforementioned related art
air-conditioning system will now be described.
[0020] First, if the air-conditioning system starts to work, the
compressor 12 is driven to circulate the refrigerant toward the
condenser 14, an expansion mechanism (not shown), and the
evaporator 16. The biaxial motor 20 is driven to rotate the indoor
fan 24 and the propeller fan 28 so that the indoor air and the
outdoor air can respectively be sucked into the indoor chamber and
the outdoor chamber.
[0021] In more detail, the indoor air at the front of the front
panel 9 passes through the indoor air inlet 10 as the indoor fan 24
rotates, and is cooled through the evaporator 16.
[0022] The air cooled by the evaporator 16 flows toward the indoor
air outlet 11 along the orifice 26, the vertical guide 7, and the
horizontal guide 8 and then is discharged to the front of the front
panel 9 through the indoor air outlet 11.
[0023] Meanwhile, the outdoor air is sucked into the outdoor inlet
5 by rotation of the propeller fan 28 and flows into the condenser
14 after passing through the shroud 30. Afterwards, the outdoor air
absorbs heat of the refrigerant flowing inside the condenser 14 and
then is discharged to the outdoor.
[0024] However, the related art air-conditioning system has several
problems.
[0025] First, since the indoor air inlet and the indoor air outlet
are respectively formed at the upper and lower portions of the
front panel, the air may be sucked into the indoor air inlet again
after being discharged to the indoor.
[0026] Further, after the indoor air flows into the indoor chamber
through the indoor air inlet formed at the lower portion of the
front panel and is exchanged with heat there, it is supplied to the
indoor through the indoor air outlet formed at the upper portion of
the front panel. Therefore, flow of the air flowing inside the
indoor chamber is rapidly varied to cause air flow loss and high
noise.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0027] Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an
air-conditioning system that substantially obviates one or more
problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related
art.
[0028] An object of the present invention is to provide an
air-conditioning system having an improved performance.
[0029] Additional advantages, objects, and features of the
invention will be set forth in part in the description which
follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary
skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be
learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other
advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the
structure particularly pointed out in the written description and
claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.
[0030] To achieve these objects and other advantages and in
accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and
broadly described herein, an air-conditioning system according to
the present invention includes a cabinet sucking the indoor air
from the front and discharging the conditioned air to the side, an
indoor fan received in the cabinet, and at least one indoor heat
exchanger provided at one side of the indoor fan in the cabinet to
perform heat exchange with the air flowing inside the cabinet.
[0031] The cabinet includes an indoor chamber that performs heat
exchange with the indoor air, and an outdoor chamber provided at
the rear of the indoor chamber to perform heat exchange with the
outdoor air.
[0032] The cabinet includes at least one or more indoor air outlets
formed at at least one or more sides of the cabinet to discharge
the air cooled or heated by the indoor heat exchanger to the
indoor, and an indoor air inlet formed in a front panel
constituting the front surface of the cabinet to suck the indoor
air.
[0033] The indoor air outlets are respectively formed on left and
right sides and an upper side of the cabinet.
[0034] The air-conditioning system further includes an air guide
provided inside the cabinet to communicate with the indoor air
inlet and the indoor air outlets, the air flowing at the front of
the air guide and being discharged to the side of the air
guide.
[0035] The air guide includes at least one or more exhaust holes
formed at at least one or more sides of the air guide to correspond
to the at least one or more indoor air outlets.
[0036] The air-conditioning system further includes an orifice
provided on the front surface of the air guide, having a path
formed toward the front panel.
[0037] The path is gradually reduced toward the rear.
[0038] The indoor fan includes a centrifugal fan provided inside
the air guide.
[0039] More preferably, the indoor fan includes a centrifugal turbo
fan provided inside the air guide.
[0040] Preferably, the indoor air inlet includes a suction grill
provided with a plurality of air vents.
[0041] The air-conditioning system further includes an air guide
provided inside the cabinet to partition the indoor chamber and the
outdoor chamber, guiding air flow inside the indoor chamber.
[0042] The outdoor chamber includes an outdoor heat exchanger that
performs heat exchange with the outdoor air, and an outdoor fan
that sucks the outdoor air into the outdoor chamber and discharges
the air to the outdoor.
[0043] Preferably, the indoor fan and the outdoor fan are driven by
a biaxial motor.
[0044] The cabinet substantially has a square box shape as it is
provided with the indoor air outlets at left and right sides,
respectively.
[0045] The cabinet substantially has a square box shape as it is
provided with the indoor air outlet at the upper side.
[0046] The indoor heat exchanger is provided between the front
surface of the cabinet and the indoor fan.
[0047] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general
description and the following detailed description of the present
invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide
further explanation of the invention as claimed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0048] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a
further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and
constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of
the invention and together with the description serve to explain
the principle of the invention. In the drawings:
[0049] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a related art
air-conditioning system;
[0050] FIG. 2 is a longitudinal-sectional view illustrating a
related art air-conditioning system;
[0051] FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating an
air-conditioning system according to the first embodiment of the
present invention;
[0052] FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 3;
[0053] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 3;
[0054] FIG. 6 is a longitudinal-sectional view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 3;
[0055] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an
air-conditioning system according to the second embodiment of the
present invention;
[0056] FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 7;
[0057] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 7;
[0058] FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating an
air-conditioning system according to the third embodiment of the
present invention;
[0059] FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 10; and
[0060] FIG. 12 is a longitudinal-sectional view illustrating the
air-conditioning system shown in FIG. 10.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0061] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred
embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are
illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the
same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to
refer to the same or like parts.
[0062] Referring to FIG. 3 to FIG. 6, an air-conditioning system
according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes
a cabinet provided with various elements required to cool and heat
the indoor.
[0063] In the first embodiment of the present invention, the
cabinet is partitioned into an indoor chamber I and an outdoor
chamber O. The indoor chamber I performs heat exchange with the
indoor air while the outdoor chamber O performs heat exchange with
the outdoor air.
[0064] The outdoor chamber O is provided at the rear of the indoor
chamber I so that its outer wall is exposed to the outdoor.
[0065] In the present invention, the indoor air A is sucked at the
front of the cabinet, and the conditioned air in the indoor chamber
I is discharged to the side of the cabinet.
[0066] To this end, at least one air outlet is formed at least one
of sides of the cabinet.
[0067] The outdoor air B is sucked at the side of the cabinet and
exchanged with heat in the outdoor chamber O. The outdoor air B is
then discharged to the rear of the cabinet.
[0068] Preferably, the cabinet has an opened rear surface or an
opening is formed at the rear surface of the cabinet to
substantially form a square box shape. However, the rear surface of
the cabinet is not limited to the above case.
[0069] In the first embodiment, the cabinet includes a base panel
52 constituting the bottom of the cabinet, an upper frame 54
provided above the base panel 52, and a front panel 61 constituting
the front surface of the cabinet.
[0070] The upper frame 54 constitutes left and right sides and an
upper surface of the cabinet. The front panel 61 is provided with
an indoor air inlet 62 that sucks the indoor air.
[0071] Preferably, the indoor air inlet 62 includes a suction grill
provided with a plurality of air vents 62a.
[0072] The base panel 52, the upper frame 54, and the front panel
61 may be formed in a single body. More preferably, they are
separately manufactured and then assembled into one another in a
single body so that their inner elements may readily be repaired or
cleaned, in the same manner as the first embodiment.
[0073] In the first embodiment, indoor air outlets 55, 56 and 57
are respectively formed at the cabinet, more particularly, at left,
right, and upper sides of the upper frame 54, so the indoor air is
sucked from the side of the upper frame 54.
[0074] The indoor air outlet formed at the left side of the upper
frame 54 is referred to as "left indoor air outlet 55", the indoor
air outlet formed at the right side of the upper frame 54 is
referred to as "right indoor air outlet 56", and the indoor air
outlet formed at the upper side of the upper frame 54 is referred
to as "upper indoor air outlet 57."
[0075] The indoor air outlets 55, 56, and 57 are formed at the
front of the upper frame 54 constituting the outer wall of the
indoor chamber I.
[0076] Preferably, each of the indoor air outlets 55, 56, and 57
includes a discharge grill provided with a plurality of air
vents.
[0077] Meanwhile, an outdoor air inlet is formed at least one of
the left, right and upper sides of the upper frame 54.
[0078] In the first embodiment, at least one or more outdoor air
inlets 58, 59 and 60 are formed at the rear of the upper frame 54
to suck the outdoor air into the outdoor chamber O.
[0079] In more detail, the outdoor air inlets 58, 59 and 60 are
respectively formed at left, right and upper sides of the rear of
the upper frame 54, and the air inside the outdoor chamber is
discharged to the outdoor through the rear surface of the upper
frame 54.
[0080] For convenience of description, the outdoor air inlet formed
at the left side of the upper frame 54 is referred to as "left
outdoor air inlet 58", the outdoor air inlet formed at the right
side of the upper frame 54 is referred to as "right outdoor air
inlet 59", and the outdoor air inlet formed at the upper side of
the upper frame 54 is referred to as "upper outdoor air inlet
60."
[0081] Therefore, the outdoor air is sucked through the three sides
of the upper frame 54 and discharged to the rear through the rear
surface of the cabinet.
[0082] An indoor fan 70 and an indoor heat exchanger 74 are
provided inside the cabinet, more particularly inside the indoor
chamber I, while an outdoor heat exchanger 84 and an outdoor fan 80
are provided in the outdoor chamber O.
[0083] The indoor heat exchanger 74 is provided at one side of the
indoor fan 70, more preferably between the indoor fan 70 and the
front panel 61 to perform heat exchange with the air flowing from
the indoor air inlet 62 to the indoor air outlets 55, 56 and
57.
[0084] The outdoor fan 80 is designed to suck the air into the
outdoor chamber O to discharge the air to the outdoor. The outdoor
fan 80 sucks the air along its circumference to discharge the air
to the rear, i.e., the shaft direction. An axle fan that sucks the
air from the front and ventilates the air to the rear may be used
as the outdoor fan 80.
[0085] Furthermore, the outdoor heat exchanger 84 is provided at
one side of the outdoor fan 80, more preferably at the rear of the
outdoor fan 80 to perform heat exchange with the outdoor air sucked
into the outdoor chamber O through the outdoor air inlets 58, 59
and 60.
[0086] In addition, the cabinet further includes an air guide 64
that communicates with the indoor air inlet 62 and the indoor air
outlets 55, 56 and 57.
[0087] In more detail, the air guide 64 guides the air flowing
inside the indoor chamber I.
[0088] The air flowing into the indoor chamber I through the indoor
air inlet 62 flows from the front of the air guide 64 to the inner
side of the air guide 64 and then is discharged to the side of the
air guide 64.
[0089] To this end, at least one exhaust hole is formed at at least
one of the sides of the air guide 64.
[0090] Preferably, the exhaust hole is formed to correspond to the
indoor air outlets. Therefore, exhaust holes 66, 67 and 68 are
formed at left, right and upper sides of the air guide 64 to
correspond to the indoor air outlets 55, 56 and 57.
[0091] Preferably, the exhaust holes 66, 67 and 68 face the indoor
air outlets 55, 56 and 57.
[0092] The front surface of the air guide is fully opened in the
same manner as the first embodiment. Alternatively, the front
surface of the air guide may be provided with an air vent having a
predetermined size.
[0093] The air guide 64 constructed as above is preferably designed
to partition the indoor chamber I and the outdoor chamber O.
[0094] To this end, the air guide 64 is provided at the upper side
of the base panel 52.
[0095] The indoor fan 70 is formed inside the air guide 64.
[0096] In more detail, the indoor fan 70 includes a centrifugal
fan, more preferably a centrifugal turbo fan of a high static
pressure, which sucks the air along the shaft direction and
ventilates the air to its circumference.
[0097] Preferably, the indoor fan 70 and the outdoor fan 80 are
driven by a biaxial motor 78.
[0098] The biaxial motor 78 includes a front rotational shaft 75
and a rear rotational shaft 76. The front rotational shaft 75 is
extended to the front toward the front panel 61 and connected with
the indoor fan 70 while the rear rotational shaft 76 is extended
toward the rear surface of the cabinet and connected with the
outdoor fan 80.
[0099] Therefore, the indoor fan 70 and the outdoor fan 80
respectively connected with the front rotational shaft 75 and the
rear rotational shaft 76 have shaft directions respectively formed
in front and rear directions.
[0100] The biaxial motor 78 may be provided on either the rear
surface of the air guide 64 or a motor mounter 79 provided in the
outdoor chamber O.
[0101] Meanwhile, the outdoor chamber O is provided with a shroud
82 that constitutes a path of the outdoor air flown by the outdoor
fan 80.
[0102] The outdoor heat exchanger 84 is provided at the inner side
or the rear of the shroud 82 to heat or cool the air ventilated to
the rear by the outdoor fan 80.
[0103] A reference numeral 86 that is not described denotes a
compressor provided in the base panel 52 so that it may be
positioned inside the outdoor chamber O.
[0104] A reference numeral 88 denotes a capillary tube provided
between the outdoor heat exchanger 84 and the indoor heat exchanger
to expand the condensed refrigerant.
[0105] The operation of the aforementioned air-conditioning system
according to the first embodiment of the present invention will now
be described.
[0106] The air-conditioning system can be operated along a
circulating direction of the refrigerant in a cooling mode or a
heating mode. Hereinafter, the operation of the air-conditioning
system based on a cooling mode will be described.
[0107] First, if the air-conditioning system works, the compressor
86 is driven to discharge the refrigerant at high temperature and
high pressure. The refrigerant discharged at high temperature and
high pressure is condensed while emitting heat to the outdoor air
flowing through the outdoor heat exchanger 84.
[0108] The refrigerant condensed by the outer heat exchanger 84 is
expanded through the capillary tube 88, and is evaporated by
absorbing heat of the indoor air flowing through the indoor heat
exchanger 74. Then, the refrigerant flows into the compressor 86.
In this way, the operation of the refrigerant is repeated.
[0109] If the biaxial motor 78 is driven, the indoor fan 70 is
driven so that the indoor air A at the front of the front panel 61
is sucked into the indoor chamber I through the indoor air inlet
62.
[0110] The indoor air A sucked into the indoor chamber I is cooled
by the indoor heat exchanger 74. Then, the indoor air A is sucked
into the air guide 64 through a path 73 of an orifice 72.
[0111] Next, the air cooled by the indoor chamber I is scattered in
three directions through the exhaust holes 66, 67 and 68 of the air
guide 64. Then, the air is discharged to three indoor directions
through the left indoor air outlet 55, the right indoor air outlet
56 and the upper indoor air outlet 57.
[0112] Meanwhile, the outdoor air sucked from both sides and the
upper side of the upper frame 54 to the inner portion of the
outdoor chamber I by driving of the outdoor fan 80 connected with
the biaxial motor 78 is ventilated to the rear toward the outdoor
heat exchanger 84. Then, the outdoor air is heated by absorbing
heat of the refrigerant flowing inside the outdoor heat exchanger
84.
[0113] The air heated by the outdoor heat exchanger 84 is
discharged to the rear through the rear surface of the cabinet.
[0114] Next, the air-conditioning system according to the second
embodiment of the present invention will be described with
reference to FIG. 7 to FIG. 9.
[0115] The air-conditioning system according to the second
embodiment of the present invention includes an upper frame 54a
that discharges the air to both sides as the indoor air outlet 57
formed at the upper side of the upper frame 54 described in the
first embodiment is removed.
[0116] Since the exhaust hole 68 formed at the upper side of the
air guide 64 described in the first embodiment is removed, an air
guide 64a provided with exhaust holes 66 and 67 at left and right
sides only is provided inside the cabinet of the air-conditioning
system according to the second embodiment of the present
invention.
[0117] Therefore, the air-conditioning system according to the
second embodiment of the present invention sucks the air from the
front of the cabinet and discharges the conditioned air to both
sides of the cabinet.
[0118] Since other elements and their operation are the same as
those of the first embodiment, the same reference numbers will be
used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts and
their repeated description will be omitted.
[0119] Now, the air-conditioning system according to the third
embodiment of the present invention will be described with
reference to FIG. 10 to FIG. 12.
[0120] The air-conditioning system according to the third
embodiment of the present invention includes an upper frame 54b
that discharges the air to the upper side as the left and right
indoor air outlets 55 and 56 formed at both sides of the upper
frame 54 described in the first embodiment are removed.
[0121] Since the exhaust holes 66 and 67 formed at both sides of
the air guide 64 described in the first embodiment are removed, an
air guide 64b provided with an exhaust hole 68 at the upper side
only is provided inside the cabinet of the air-conditioning system
according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
[0122] Therefore, the air-conditioning system according to the
third embodiment of the present invention sucks the air from the
front of the cabinet and discharges the conditioned air to the
upper side of the cabinet.
[0123] Since other elements and their operation are the same as
those of the first embodiment, the same reference numbers will be
used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts and
their repeated description will be omitted.
[0124] The aforementioned air-conditioning system according to the
present invention has the following advantages.
[0125] First, since the indoor air discharged from the cabinet is
not affected by the indoor air sucked into the cabinet, the cooled
or heated air is prevented from being sucked into the cabinet again
directly after being discharged from the cabinet, thereby improving
air-conditioning performance.
[0126] Second, the indoor air is sucked from the front of the
cabinet and the conditioned air is discharged to the side of the
cabinet, it is possible to minimize a flow path and flow resistance
of the air. This reduces load and power consumption of the fan, and
minimizes flow noise.
[0127] Finally, since the conditioned air is discharged to three
directions, the indoor chamber can quickly be cooled or heated.
[0128] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various
modifications and variations can be made in the present invention
without departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. Thus,
it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications
and variations of this invention provided they come within the
scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *