U.S. patent application number 13/546304 was filed with the patent office on 2013-01-17 for vehicle air-conditioning apparatus.
This patent application is currently assigned to MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.. The applicant listed for this patent is Junichiro Hara, Tomohiko Shibata. Invention is credited to Junichiro Hara, Tomohiko Shibata.
Application Number | 20130014913 13/546304 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 47505955 |
Filed Date | 2013-01-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130014913 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hara; Junichiro ; et
al. |
January 17, 2013 |
VEHICLE AIR-CONDITIONING APPARATUS
Abstract
Provided is a vehicle air-conditioning apparatus capable of
setting a space formed between an upper surface of a heater core
and a rotating shaft of an air mixing damper to a given
axially-uniform space, thereby making the temperature adjustment
easier and improving the temperature control performance. In a
vehicle air-conditioning apparatus including an air mixing damper
that has a rotating shaft disposed above an upper portion of a
heater core, heater-core supporting parts that support only upper
right and left shoulders of the heater core are provided on right
and left side faces of a unit case, an upper surface of the heater
core is supported by the heater-core supporting parts, and an space
adjusting section that sets a space formed between the upper
surface of the heater core and the rotating shaft of the air mixing
damper to an axially-uniform space is provided on the air mixing
damper.
Inventors: |
Hara; Junichiro; (Tokyo,
JP) ; Shibata; Tomohiko; (Tokyo, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Hara; Junichiro
Shibata; Tomohiko |
Tokyo
Tokyo |
|
JP
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES,
LTD.
Tokyo
JP
|
Family ID: |
47505955 |
Appl. No.: |
13/546304 |
Filed: |
July 11, 2012 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
165/103 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60H 1/0005 20130101;
B60H 1/00678 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
165/103 |
International
Class: |
F28F 27/02 20060101
F28F027/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jul 13, 2011 |
JP |
2011-155067 |
Claims
1. A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus in which an air flow path
in a unit case is branched into a bypass flow path and a heating
flow path at a downstream side of an evaporator; a heater core is
disposed in the heating flow path; a rotating shaft is disposed
above an upper portion of the heater core; and an air mixing damper
that is made to turn about the rotating shaft to adjust the ratios
of airflows to be circulated into the bypass flow path and the
heating flow path is provided, wherein heater-core supporting parts
that support only upper right and left shoulders of the heater core
are provided on right and left side faces of the unit case, and an
upper surface of the heater core is supported by the heater-core
supporting parts; and a space adjusting section that sets a space
formed between the upper surface of the heater core and the
rotating shaft of the air mixing damper to an axially-uniform space
is provided on the air mixing damper.
2. A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the space adjusting section is structured such that an
outer periphery thereof is an arc having the same center as a
rotation center of the rotating shaft, so that the axial space can
be set to the uniform space irrespective of a rotation angle of the
air mixing damper.
3. A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the space adjusting section is integrally formed on the
rotating shaft around the rotating shaft along the axial
direction.
4. A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the space adjusting section is provided at least over a
rotation angle range of the air mixing damper from a maximum
cooling position to a maximum heating position.
5. A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein a protruding part that protrudes in a direction opposite to
the air mixing damper with the rotating shaft therebetween is
integrally provided on the space adjusting section; and a seal
member that abuts on the upper surface of the heater core in a
vicinity of the maximum heating position to close the axial space
is provided on the protruding part.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is based on Japanese Patent Application
No.2011-155067, the contents of which are incorporated herein by
reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates to an air-mixing-type vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus having a heater core and an air mixing
damper.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] An HVAC unit (heating ventilation and air conditioning unit)
of an air conditioning apparatus to be installed in a vehicle is
structured such that an evaporator, an air mixing damper, and a
heater core are disposed in an air flow path in a unit case,
sequentially from the upstream side of the air flow path, and air
whose temperature has been adjusted by these units is blown into
the vehicle interior selectively from any of a face vent duct, a
foot vent duct, and a defroster vent duct, which are formed at the
downstream side thereof, via a plurality of blowing-mode switching
dampers.
[0004] The air flow path is branched into a bypass flow path and a
heating flow path at a downstream side of the evaporator, and the
heater core is disposed in the heating flow path. The ratios of
airflows to be separately circulated to the bypass flow path and
the heating flow path can be adjusted by the rotation angle of the
air mixing damper, and the airflow passing through the bypass flow
path and the airflow passing through the heater core meet at a
downstream area of the air mixing damper and are mixed, thereby
producing air that is adjusted to a set temperature.
[0005] The heater core is disposed on the bottom face of the unit
case so as to intersect the heating flow path, and an upper surface
thereof is supported along the entire width by a heater-core
upper-portion supporting part that extends from right and left side
faces of the unit case along the entire width in the width
direction. The heater-core upper-portion supporting part segments
the air flow path at the upper portion of the heater core (for
example, see PTLs 1, 2, and 3).
CITATION LIST
Patent Literature
[0006] {PTL 1} Japanese Unexamined Patent Application, Publication
No. Hei 05-96932 [0007] {PTL 2} Japanese Unexamined Patent
Application, Publication No. 2004-249946 [0008] {PTL 3} Japanese
Unexamined Patent Application, Publication No. 2006-168432
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Technical Problem
[0009] As described above, in the conventional HVAC unit, the lower
portion of the heater core disposed in the heating flow path is
supported on the bottom face of the unit case, and the entire upper
surface thereof in the width direction is supported by the
heater-core upper-portion supporting part, which extends from the
right and left side faces of the unit case along the entire width
in the width direction. Thus, it is necessary to integrally form,
on the right and left side faces of the unit case, the heater-core
upper-portion supporting part having at least a length equal to
half the length of the unit case in the width direction.
[0010] Because this heater-core upper-portion supporting part is
large in size in the width direction, the draft angle needs to be
large during plastic molding, the wall thickness of a root portion
thereof is increased, and the wall thickness of a tip portion
thereof is reduced, there is a problem in that the wall is likely
to lean (to be tilted), thereby leading to a poor molding accuracy.
This problem is difficult to avoid with current plastic molding
accuracy, and it is difficult to set a constant wall angle of the
unit case. On the other hand, a certain space exists between the
heater-core upper-portion supporting part and the rotating shaft of
the air mixing damper, and cool air cooled by the evaporator flows
through this space. Because it is difficult to set a constant wall
angle of the unit case, the space becomes non-uniform, thus causing
a non-uniform amount of bypass cool air and deterioration of the
temperature control performance.
[0011] The present invention has been made in view of such
circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus in which a space formed between the
upper surface of the heater core and the rotating shaft of the air
mixing damper can be set to a given axially-uniform space, thereby
making the temperature adjustment easier and improving the
temperature control performance.
Solution to Problem
[0012] In order to solve the above-described problems, the vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus of the present invention employs the
following solutions.
[0013] Specifically, an aspect according to the present invention
is a vehicle air-conditioning apparatus in which an air flow path
in a unit case is branched into a bypass flow path and a heating
flow path at a downstream side of an evaporator; a heater core is
disposed in the heating flow path; a rotating shaft is disposed
above an upper portion of the heater core; and an air mixing damper
that is made to turn about the rotating shaft to adjust the ratios
of airflows to be circulated into the bypass flow path and the
heating flow path is provided, in which heater-core supporting
parts that support only upper right and left shoulders of the
heater core are provided on right and left side faces of the unit
case, and an upper surface of the heater core is supported by the
heater-core supporting parts; and a space adjusting section that
sets a space formed between the upper surface of the heater core
and the rotating shaft of the air mixing damper to an
axially-uniform space is provided on the air mixing damper.
[0014] According to the above-described aspect, in the vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus that includes the air mixing damper
having the rotating shaft disposed above the upper portion of the
heater core, the heater-core supporting parts, which support only
the upper right and left shoulders of the heater core, are provided
on the right and left side faces of the unit case to support an
upper surface of the heater core; and the space adjusting section,
which sets the space formed between the upper surface of the heater
core and the rotating shaft of the air mixing damper to the
axially-uniform space, is provided on the air mixing damper.
Therefore, since the heater-core upper surface is supported by the
heater-core supporting parts, which are provided on the right and
left side faces of the unit case and which support only the upper
right and left shoulders of the heater core, a space is formed
between the heater-core upper surface and the rotating shaft of the
air mixing damper. The space adjusting section, provided on the air
mixing damper, can set this space to a uniform space that is
axially uniform and is made as small as possible. Therefore, the
problem of conventional technologies in which the upper surface of
the heater core is supported along the entire width by a
heater-core upper-portion supporting part provided on the unit
case, namely, deterioration of the temperature control performance
caused by a non-uniform space formed when a wall constituting the
heater-core supporting upper-portion part is tilted, is solved,
thus stabilizing the amount of bypass air flowing from the space,
thereby making it possible to make the temperature adjustment
easier and to improve the temperature control performance.
[0015] Furthermore, in the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus
according to the above-described aspect, the space adjusting
section is structured such that an outer periphery thereof is an
arc having the same center as a rotation center of the rotating
shaft, so that the axial space can be set to the uniform space
irrespective of a rotation angle of the air mixing damper.
[0016] According to the above-described aspect, the outer periphery
of the space adjusting section is an arc having the same center as
the rotation center of the rotating shaft, so that the axial space
can be set to the uniform space irrespective of the rotation angle
of the air mixing damper. Thus, the axial space formed between the
upper surface of the heater core and the rotating shaft of the air
mixing damper can be set to the uniform space by the space
adjusting section irrespective of the rotation angle of the air
mixing damper. Therefore, the axial space is prevented from
becoming non-uniform depending on the rotation angle of the air
mixing damper. Thus, it is possible to make the temperature
adjustment easier and to improve the temperature control
performance.
[0017] Furthermore, in one of the vehicle air-conditioning
apparatuses according to the above-described aspect, the space
adjusting section is integrally formed on the rotating shaft around
the rotating shaft along the axial direction.
[0018] According to the above-described aspect, the space adjusting
section is integrally formed on the rotating shaft around the
rotating shaft along the axial direction. Since the space adjusting
section is provided around the rotating shaft, the original
function of the air mixing damper is not adversely affected, the
structure thereof is not unnecessarily complicated, and molding
thereof does not become difficult. Therefore, while simplifying the
supporting structure for the heater core by eliminating the
heater-core upper-portion supporting part for supporting the upper
surface of the heater core along the entire width, the space formed
between the upper surface of the heater core and the rotating shaft
is set uniform, thus making it possible to make the temperature
adjustment easier and to improve the temperature control
performance.
[0019] Furthermore, in one of the vehicle air-conditioning
apparatuses of the above-described aspect, the space adjusting
section is provided at least over a rotation angle range of the air
mixing damper from a maximum cooling position to a maximum heating
position.
[0020] According to the above-described aspect, the space adjusting
section is provided at least over the rotation angle range of the
air mixing damper from the maximum cooling position to the maximum
heating position. Thus, in the entire rotation range in which the
air mixing damper provides a temperature adjustment function, the
axial space formed between the upper surface of the heater core and
the rotating shaft of the air mixing damper can be set to the
uniform space by the space adjusting section. Therefore, an area
where the space adjusting section is installed is made the
requisite minimum, and the modified part of the air mixing damper
is made small, thereby making it possible to suppress an increase
in cost.
[0021] Furthermore, in one of the vehicle air-conditioning
apparatuses of the above-described aspect, a protruding part that
protrudes in a direction opposite to the air mixing damper with the
rotating shaft therebetween is integrally provided on the space
adjusting section; and a seal member that abuts on the upper
surface of the heater core in a vicinity of the maximum heating
position to close the axial space is provided on the protruding
part.
[0022] According to the above-described aspect, the space adjusting
section is integrally provided with the protruding part, which
protrudes in the direction opposite to the air mixing damper with
the rotating shaft therebetween, and the seal member, which abuts
on the upper surface of the heater core in the vicinity of the
maximum heating position to close the axial space, is provided on
the protruding part. Thus, the seal member, provided on the
protruding part protruding from the space adjusting section, is
made to abut on the upper surface of the heater core in the
vicinity of the maximum heating position, thereby making it
possible to close the axial space formed between the upper surface
of the heater core and the rotating shaft of the air mixing damper.
Therefore, in the vicinity of the maximum heating position, the
bypass of cool air flowing from the space can be eliminated, and
the heating performance can be maximized.
Advantageous Effects of Invention
[0023] According to the present invention, since the upper surface
of the heater core is supported by the heater-core supporting
parts, which are provided on the right and left side faces of the
unit case and which support only the upper right and left shoulders
of the heater core, a space is formed between the heater-core upper
surface and the rotating shaft of the air mixing damper. However,
the space adjusting section, which is provided in the air mixing
damper, can set this space to a uniform space that is axially
uniform and is made as small as possible. Thus, the problem of
conventional technologies in which the upper surface of the heater
core is supported along the entire width by the heater-core
upper-portion supporting part provided on the unit case, namely,
deterioration of the temperature control performance caused by a
non-uniform space formed when a wall constituting the heater-core
upper-portion supporting part is tilted, is solved, thus
stabilizing the amount of bypass air flowing from the space,
thereby making it possible to make the temperature adjustment
easier and to improve the temperature control performance.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0024] FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus according to one embodiment of the
present invention.
[0025] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus shown in FIG. 1, seen from a heater core
side.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a structural view of the vicinity of a heater core
when a lower case of the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus shown
in FIG. 1 is removed.
[0027] FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the vicinities of
heater-core supporting parts of the vehicle air-conditioning
apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
[0028] FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing turning
states (A) and (B) of an air mixing damper of the vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
[0029] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the air mixing damper shown
in FIG. 5.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0030] An embodiment of the present invention will be described
below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.
[0031] FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a vehicle
air-conditioning apparatus (HVAC unit) according to the embodiment
of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of
the vehicle air-conditioning apparatus seen from a heater core
side.
[0032] A vehicle air-conditioning apparatus (HVAC unit; heating
ventilation and air conditioning unit) 1 includes a plastic unit
case 2 made up by integrally joining a plurality of partial cases
that are formed by separating them in vertical and horizontal
directions.
[0033] In the unit case 2, an air flow path 7 is formed to allow an
airflow blown from a blower unit 3, which is formed of a fan case
4, an impeller 5, and a fan motor 6 that are disposed at a side of
the unit case 2, to flow in the front-to-back direction (horizontal
direction in FIG. 1) so as to make it circulate toward the
downstream side. An evaporator 8 that constitutes a refrigeration
cycle (not shown) is substantially vertically disposed at an
upstream portion of the air flow path 7.
[0034] The air flow path 7 is branched into a bypass flow path 9
and a heating flow path 10 at a downstream side of the evaporator
8. As shown in FIG. 6, at the branch point of the bypass flow path
9 and the heating flow path 10, an air mixing damper 11 that is
integrally provided with a sub-damper 11A with a rotating shaft 12
therebetween is disposed so as to be capable of turning about the
rotating shaft 12 and is structured so as to be capable of
adjusting the ratios of airflows to be circulated into the bypass
flow path 9 and the heating flow path 10. In the heating flow path
10, a heater core 13 in which cooling water flowing from an engine
cooling-water circuit (not shown) circulates is substantially
vertically disposed.
[0035] The bypass flow path 9 and the heating flow path 10 meet in
an air mixing area 14 located at a downstream side of the air
mixing damper 11 and communicate with the following three vent
ducts: a face vent duct 15; a foot vent duct 16; and a defroster
vent duct 17 that are formed at a downstream side of the air mixing
area 14. A defroster/face damper 18 that switches the blowing mode
is provided between the face vent duct 15 and the defroster vent
duct 17. Furthermore, a foot damper 19 that switches the blowing
mode is provided at the entrance of the foot vent duct 16.
[0036] As shown in FIG. 1, the defroster/face damper 18 is capable
of turning about a rotating shaft 20 between a position at which
the face vent duct 15 is completely closed and a position at which
the defroster vent duct 17 is completely closed. On the other hand,
the foot damper 19 is capable of turning about a rotating shaft 21
between a position at which the foot vent duct 16 is completely
closed and a position at which a duct leading to the face vent duct
15 and the defroster vent duct 17 is completely closed. The
defroster/face damper 18 and the foot damper 19 are capable of
turning to blowing-mode positions selected via a link mechanism 22
formed of a lever and a link coupled to ends of the rotating shafts
20 and 21.
[0037] Specifically, through opening and closing of the
above-described two defroster/face damper 18 and foot damper 19,
the blowing mode of hot air to be blown into the vehicle interior
can be selectively switched to any of the following five blowing
modes: a face mode in which hot air is blown out from the face vent
duct 15; a bi-level mode in which hot air is blown out from both
the face vent duct 15 and the foot vent duct 16; a foot mode in
which hot air is blown out from the foot vent duct 16; a
defroster/foot mode in which hot air is blown out from both the
foot vent duct 16 and the defroster vent duct 17; and a defroster
mode in which hot air is blown out from the defroster vent duct
17.
[0038] As described above, the heater core 13 is substantially
vertically disposed in the heating flow path 10 in the unit case 2
so as to intersect the heating flow path. More specifically, as
shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the heater core 13 is disposed such that a
lower portion thereof is placed on a heater-core installing part 23
provided on a bottom face of the heating flow path 10 in the unit
case 2, and right and left shoulders 13A and 13B of an upper
portion thereof are supported by heater-core supporting parts 24
and 25 that are integrally formed on side faces 2A and 2B of the
unit case 2, respectively.
[0039] As shown in FIG. 4, the heater-core supporting parts 24 and
25 are formed integrally on the inner faces of the unit case 2 so
as to protrude inward from the right and left side faces 2A and 2B
of the plastic unit case 2 by a predetermined distance and are
structured to support only the upper right and left shoulders 13A
and 13B of the heater core 13 placed on the heater-core installing
part 23. The supporting portions of the heater-core supporting
parts 24 and 25 have a C-channel shape (see FIG. 1) in cross
section and have holding faces 26, 27, 28, and 29 (see FIGS. 1 and
4) that hold upper surfaces, end surfaces, and front and back side
surfaces of the upper right and left shoulders 13A and 13B of the
heater core 13.
[0040] With this structure in which the heater-core supporting
parts 24 and 25 support only the upper right and left shoulders 13A
and 13B of the heater core 13, a supporting wall for supporting an
upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 along the entire width is
eliminated. As a result, the heater-core supporting parts 24 and 25
are reduced in thickness, and, accordingly, the heater-core
supporting parts 24 and 25 and the rotating shaft 12 of the air
mixing damper 11 are disposed close together. Incidentally, with
this structure, the distances between the heater core 13 and the
rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11 in vertical and
front-to-back directions are each reduced by about 10 mm, thus
achieving a reduction in the size of the HVAC unit 1.
[0041] Furthermore, in this embodiment, by eliminating the
supporting wall, which supports the upper surface 13C of the heater
core 13 along the entire width, an axial space is formed between
the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 and the rotating shaft
12 of the air mixing damper 11. In order to make this axial space
as small as possible and to set the space to an axially-uniform
space S, a space adjusting section 30 is integrally formed around
the rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11. As shown in FIG.
3, both ends of the space adjusting section 30 are notched to avoid
interference with the heater-core supporting parts 24 and 25.
[0042] The space adjusting section 30 is structured such that an
outer periphery 30A thereof is an arc having the same center as a
center O of the rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11, as
shown in FIG. 5, so that the axial space can be set to the uniform
space S (see FIG. 3) irrespective of the rotation angle of the air
mixing damper 11. Furthermore, the space adjusting section 30 is
provided over the rotation angle range in which the air mixing
damper 11 turns from a maximum heating position (MAX HOT position)
shown in FIG. 5(A) where the air mixing damper 11 abuts on a seal
face 2C of the unit case 2 to a maximum cooling position (MAX COOL
position) where the air mixing damper 11 abuts on a seal face 2D of
the unit case 2, through a medium opening position shown in FIG.
5(B).
[0043] Furthermore, the space adjusting section 30 is integrally
provided with a protruding part 30B that protrudes toward the
sub-damper 11A (in the direction opposite to the air mixing damper)
with the rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11
therebetween. As shown in FIG. 5(A), a seal member (insulator) 31
that abuts on the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 in the
vicinity of the maximum heating position to close the
above-described axially-uniform space S, formed between the upper
surface 13C of the heater core 13 and the rotating shaft 12 of the
air mixing damper 11, is provided on a surface of the protruding
part 30B.
[0044] With the above-described structure, the following
advantageous effects are afforded according to this embodiment.
[0045] An airflow blown from the blower unit 3 to the air flow path
7 is cooled through heat exchange with the refrigerant while
passing through the evaporator 8. According to the degree of
opening of the air mixing damper 11, part of the airflow circulates
to the bypass flow path 9, and the other part thereof circulates to
the heating flow path 10. Hot air heated by the heater core 13 in
the heating flow path 10 and cool air passing through the bypass
flow path 9 are mixed in the air mixing area 14 and adjusted to
have a set temperature, and the temperature-adjusted air is blown
out from any of the face vent duct 15, the foot vent duct 16, and
the defroster vent duct 17, selected through opening and closing of
the defroster/face damper 18 and the foot damper 19, into the
vehicle interior to be used for air conditioning of the vehicle
interior.
[0046] The heater core 13, which heats the airflow circulating to
the heating flow path 10, performs heat exchange between the
airflow and high-temperature cooling water circulating from the
engine cooling-water circuit to heat the airflow and is
substantially vertically disposed so as to intersect the heating
flow path 10. The heater core 13 is installed by being placed on
the heater-core installing part 23, which is provided on the bottom
face of the heating flow path 10, and only the right and left
shoulders 13A and 13B of the upper portions of the heater core 13
are supported by the heater-core supporting parts 24 and 25,
provided on the right and left side faces 2A and 2B of the unit
case 2, respectively.
[0047] In this way, the upper portions of the heater core 13 are
supported via the heater-core supporting parts 24 and 25, which are
provided on the right and left side faces 2A and 2B of the unit
case 2, which have a C-channel shape in cross section, and which
have the holding faces 26, 27, 28, and 29 for holding only the
upper surfaces, the end surfaces, and the both front and back side
surfaces of the right and left shoulders 13A and 13B of the heater
core 13. As a result, the heater core 13 can be positioned at a
predetermined position in the heating flow path 10 with at least
four shoulder portions being supported, and can be fixedly
supported.
[0048] Therefore, even though the supporting wall for supporting
the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 along the entire width
is not provided on the right and left side faces 2A and 2B of the
unit case 2, the heater core 13 can be securely installed in the
heating flow path 10. Thus, it is possible to simplify the
structure of the unit case 2, to make molding thereof easier, and
to reduce the weight and the cost due to a reduction in the amount
of plastic used. Furthermore, since the supporting wall for
supporting the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 along the
entire width is unnecessary, and the heater core 13 and the
rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11 can be installed
close together, it is possible to reduce, by the corresponding
dimensions, the sizes of the unit case 2 and therefore the HVAC
unit 1 in the vertical and front-to-back directions, thus making
the HVAC unit 1 more compact and lighter, and to make installation
in the vehicle easier.
[0049] Furthermore, by eliminating the supporting wall for
supporting the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 along the
entire width, an axial space is formed between the upper surface
13C of the heater core 13 and the rotating shaft 12 of the air
mixing damper 11. In order to make the axial space as small as
possible and to set the space to the axially-uniform space S, the
space adjusting section 30 is integrally formed around the rotating
shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11. Thus, with the space
adjusting section 30, the space formed between the upper surface
13C of the heater core 13 and the rotating shaft 12 of the air
mixing damper 11 can be set to the space S, which is axially
uniform and is made as small as possible.
[0050] As a result, the problem of conventional technologies in
which the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 is supported
along the entire width by a heater-core upper-portion supporting
part that is provided on the unit case 2, namely, deterioration of
the temperature control performance caused by a non-uniform space
formed when a wall of the heater-core upper-portion supporting part
is tilted, is solved, thus stabilizing the amount of bypass air
flowing from the space S, thereby making it possible to make the
temperature adjustment easier and to improve the temperature
control performance.
[0051] Furthermore, the outer periphery 30A of the space adjusting
section 30 is an arc having the same center as the rotation center
0 of the rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11, so that the
axial space can be set to the uniform space S irrespective of the
rotation angle of the air mixing damper 11. Thus, the axial space
formed between the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 and the
rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11 can be set to the
uniform space S by the space adjusting section 30 irrespective of
the rotation angle of the air mixing damper 11. Therefore, the
axial space S is prevented from becoming non-uniform depending on
the rotation angle of the air mixing damper 11. Thus, it is
possible to make the temperature adjustment easier and to improve
the temperature control performance.
[0052] Furthermore, the space adjusting section 30 is integrally
formed on the rotating shaft 12 around the rotating shaft 12 of the
air mixing damper 11 along the axial direction. Since the space
adjusting section 30 is provided around the rotating shaft 12, the
original function of the air mixing damper 11 is not adversely
affected, the structure thereof is not unnecessarily complicated,
and molding thereof does not become difficult. While simplifying
the supporting structure for the heater core 13 by eliminating the
heater-core upper-portion supporting part for supporting the upper
surface 13C of the heater core 13 along the entire width, the space
S formed between the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 and
the rotating shaft 12 is set uniform, thus making it possible to
make the temperature adjustment easier and to improve the
temperature control performance.
[0053] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the space adjusting section
30 is provided only over the rotation angle range of the air mixing
damper 11 from the maximum cooling position (MAX COOL position) to
the maximum heating position (MAX HOT position). Thus, in the
entire rotation range in which the air mixing damper 11 provides a
temperature adjustment function, the axial space formed between the
upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 and the rotating shaft 12
of the air mixing damper 11 is set to the uniform space S by the
space adjusting section 30. Thus, an area where the space adjusting
section 30 is installed is made the requisite minimum, and the
modified part of the air mixing damper 11 is made small, thereby
making it possible to suppress an increase in cost.
[0054] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the space adjusting section
30 is integrally provided with the protruding part 30B, which
protrudes in the direction opposite to the air mixing damper with
the rotating shaft 12 therebetween, and the seal member 31, which
abuts on the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 in the
vicinity of the maximum heating position to close the axial space
S, is provided on the protruding part 30B. Thus, the seal member
31, provided on the protruding part 30B integrally formed in the
space adjusting section 30, is made to abut on the upper surface
13C of the heater core 13 in the vicinity of the maximum heating
position, thereby making it possible to close the axial space S
formed between the upper surface 13C of the heater core 13 and the
rotating shaft 12 of the air mixing damper 11. Therefore, in the
vicinity of the maximum heating position, the heating performance
can be maximized by eliminating the bypass of cool air flowing from
the space S.
[0055] Note that the present invention is not limited to the
invention according to the above-described embodiment, and
appropriate modifications can be made without departing from the
scope thereof. For example, in the above-described embodiment, a
description has been given of an example case where the evaporator
8 and the heater core 13 are substantially vertically disposed.
However, it is needless to say that the evaporator 8 and the heater
core 13 are not necessarily disposed vertically and may be disposed
at an angle.
[0056] Furthermore, the unit case 2 is made up by integrally
joining a plurality of partial cases that are formed by separating
them. However, the division method is not particularly limited, and
the heater-core supporting parts 24 and 25 may be integrally formed
on appropriate partial cases located corresponding to the position
where the heater core 13 is installed. Furthermore, it is also
needless to say that various modifications can be made to the
arrangement of the HVAC unit 1 and the blower unit 3.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0057] 1 vehicle air-conditioning apparatus (HVAC unit) [0058] 2
unit case [0059] 2A, 2B right and left side faces of unit case
[0060] 7 air flow path [0061] 8 evaporator [0062] 9 bypass flow
path [0063] 10 heating flow path [0064] 11 air mixing damper [0065]
12 rotating shaft [0066] 13 heater core [0067] 13A, 13B upper right
and left shoulders [0068] 13C heater-core upper surface [0069] 24,
25 heater-core supporting parts [0070] space adjusting section
[0071] 30A outer periphery [0072] 30B protruding part [0073] 31
seal member [0074] O center of rotating shaft [0075] S space
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