U.S. patent application number 14/735268 was filed with the patent office on 2016-02-11 for air conditioner.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. The applicant listed for this patent is Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Sun-Muk CHOI, Jong Kweon HA, Jin Woo HONG, Chang-woo JUNG, Jung Ho KIM, Yeon-seob YUN.
Application Number | 20160040896 14/735268 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 55267153 |
Filed Date | 2016-02-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160040896 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
HONG; Jin Woo ; et
al. |
February 11, 2016 |
AIR CONDITIONER
Abstract
An air conditioner includes an indoor unit disposed at an indoor
space; and an outdoor unit disposed at an outdoor space and
connected to the indoor unit through refrigerant pipes, wherein the
indoor unit includes an indoor unit body forming an external
appearance of the indoor unit and provided with a plurality of
indoor outlets; and a plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units
disposed inside the indoor unit body such that the plurality of
indoor heat-exchanging units corresponds to the plurality of indoor
outlets, respectively.
Inventors: |
HONG; Jin Woo; (Suwon-si,
KR) ; KIM; Jung Ho; (Suwon-si, KR) ; YUN;
Yeon-seob; (Suwon-si, KR) ; JUNG; Chang-woo;
(Suwon-si, KR) ; CHOI; Sun-Muk; (Suwon-si, KR)
; HA; Jong Kweon; (Suwon-si, KR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. |
Suwon-si |
|
KR |
|
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
55267153 |
Appl. No.: |
14/735268 |
Filed: |
June 10, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
165/221 ; 62/525;
62/528 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F25B 5/02 20130101; F24F
1/0014 20130101; F24F 1/0059 20130101; F24F 1/005 20190201 |
International
Class: |
F24F 3/06 20060101
F24F003/06; F24F 3/08 20060101 F24F003/08; F25B 5/02 20060101
F25B005/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 5, 2014 |
KR |
10-2014-0100604 |
Claims
1. An air conditioner, comprising: an indoor unit; and an outdoor
unit connected to the indoor unit through refrigerant pipes,
wherein the indoor unit comprises an indoor unit body forming an
external appearance of the indoor unit and provided with a
plurality of indoor outlets; and a plurality of indoor
heat-exchanging units disposed inside the indoor unit body such
that the plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units corresponds to
the plurality of indoor outlets, respectively.
2. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein: the indoor unit further
comprises a plurality of indoor fans corresponding to the plurality
of indoor outlets, respectively.
3. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein: the indoor unit further
comprises a plurality of expansion valves to decompress and expand
a refrigerant prior to being introduced into the plurality of
indoor heat-exchanging units.
4. The air conditioner of claim 3, wherein: the outdoor unit
further comprises a compressor to compress the refrigerant, and an
outdoor heat-exchanging unit to exchange heat with outdoor air.
5. The air conditioner of claim 4, wherein: the outdoor unit
further comprises a four-way valve to guide the refrigerant
discharged from the compressor to one of the plurality of indoor
heat-exchanging units and the outdoor heat-exchanging unit, and an
outdoor expansion valve to decompress and expand refrigerant prior
to being introduced into the outdoor heat-exchanging unit.
6. The air conditioner of claim 5, wherein: the indoor expansion
valve and the outdoor expansion valve are formed in the form of
electronic valves capable of adjusting degrees of opening.
7. The air conditioner of claim 5, comprising: a first refrigerant
pipe to guide the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to the
four-way valve; a second refrigerant pipe connecting the four-way
valve to the outdoor heat-exchanging unit; a third refrigerant pipe
connecting the four-way valve to the indoor heat-exchanging unit; a
fourth refrigerant pipe connecting the four-way valve to the
compressor to guide the refrigerant from the four-way valve to the
compressor; and a fifth refrigerant pipe connecting the indoor
heat-exchanging unit to the outdoor heat-exchanging unit, wherein
the third refrigerant pipe is connected to each of the plurality of
indoor heat-exchanging units through a plurality of third branch
refrigerant pipes, and the fifth refrigerant pipe is connected to
each of the plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units through a
plurality of fifth branch refrigerant pipes.
8. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein: the plurality of indoor
outlets are disposed in a vertical arrangement at a front surface
of the indoor unit body while spaced apart from each other.
9. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein: the plurality of indoor
outlets are disposed in a horizontal arrangement at a front surface
of the indoor unit body while spaced apart from each other.
10. An air conditioner, comprising: an indoor unit; and an outdoor
unit connected to the indoor unit through refrigerant pipes,
wherein the indoor unit comprises an indoor unit body forming an
external appearance of the indoor unit and provided with a
plurality of indoor outlets; and one indoor heat-exchanging unit
disposed inside the indoor unit body such that the indoor
heat-exchanging unit corresponds to the plurality of indoor
outlets, and the indoor heat-exchanging unit comprises a plurality
of heat-exchangers corresponding to the plurality of indoor
outlets, respectively.
11. The air conditioner of claim 10, wherein: the indoor unit
further comprises a plurality of expansion valves to decompress and
expand a refrigerant prior to being introduced into the plurality
of heat-exchangers.
12. The air conditioner of claim 11, wherein the outdoor unit
comprises: a compressor to compress the refrigerant; an outdoor
heat-exchanging unit to exchange heat with outdoor air; a four-way
valve to guide the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to
one of the plurality of exchangers and the outdoor heat-exchanging
unit; and an outdoor expansion valve to decompress and expand
refrigerant prior to being introduced into the outdoor
heat-exchanging unit.
13. An air conditioner comprising: a body comprising: a first
outlet; a first adjustable expansion valve to decompress a
refrigerant; a first heat exchanger provided to receive the
decompressed refrigerant from the first adjustable expansion valve;
a first fan provided to generate a flow of air through the first
heat exchanger to exhaust from the first outlet at a first
temperature; a second outlet; a second adjustable expansion valve
provided in parallel with the first adjustable expansion valve to
decompress the refrigerant; a second heat exchanger provided to
receive the decompressed refrigerant from the second adjustable
expansion valve; and a second fan provided to generate a flow of
air through the second heat exchanger to exhaust from the second
outlet at a second temperature.
14. The air conditioner of claim 13, wherein the first temperature
is different from the second temperature.
15. The air conditioner of claim 13, wherein each of the first
adjustable expansion valve, the first fan, the second adjustable
expansion valve, and the second fan is independently operable.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the priority benefit of the Korean
Patent Application No. 10-2014-0100604, filed on Aug. 5, 2014, in
the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The following description relates to a detachable-type air
conditioner having an indoor unit and an outdoor unit.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] In general, an air conditioner is an apparatus configured to
cool or heat indoor air through a cooling cycle, and as for the air
conditioner as such, a detachable type air conditioner having an
indoor unit and an outdoor unit may be provided.
[0006] The indoor unit includes an indoor unit body to form an
external appearance thereof, an indoor heat-exchanging unit to heat
exchange with the indoor air, and an indoor expansion valve to
decompress and expand refrigerant prior to introducing the
refrigerant into the indoor heat-exchanging unit at the time of
cooling.
[0007] The outdoor unit includes an outdoor unit body to form an
external appearance thereof, a compressor to compress the
refrigerant, an outdoor heat-exchanging unit to heat exchange with
outdoor air, an outdoor expansion valve to decompress and expand
the refrigerant prior to introducing the refrigerant into the
outdoor heat-exchanging unit at the time of heating, and a four-way
valve to guide the refrigerant to be discharged from the compressor
to one of the indoor unit or the outdoor heat-exchanging unit.
[0008] Recently, with respect to the detachable-type air
conditioner as such, an air conditioner provided with a plurality
of indoor outlets at the indoor unit body thereof may be present,
so that air is simultaneously discharged to a plurality of
locations through the plurality of indoor outlets or air is
discharged to a portion of the plurality of locations.
SUMMARY
[0009] Therefore, it is an aspect of the present disclosure to
provide an air conditioner having a plurality of indoor outlets,
capable of discharging air having different temperatures through
the plurality of indoor outlets.
[0010] Additional aspects of the disclosure will be set forth in
part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious
from the description, or may be learned by practice of the
disclosure.
[0011] In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, an
air conditioner includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit. The
indoor unit may be disposed in an indoor space. The outdoor unit
may be disposed in an outdoor space and connected to the indoor
unit through refrigerant pipes. The indoor unit may include: an
indoor unit body forming an external appearance of the indoor unit
and provided with a plurality of indoor outlets; and a plurality of
indoor heat-exchanging units disposed inside the indoor unit body
such that the plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units corresponds
to the plurality of indoor outlets, respectively.
[0012] The indoor unit may include a plurality of indoor fans
corresponding to the plurality of indoor outlets, respectively.
[0013] The indoor unit may include a plurality of expansion valves
to decompress and expand each refrigerant prior to being introduced
into the plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units at the time of
cooling.
[0014] The outdoor unit may include a compressor to compress the
refrigerant, and an outdoor heat-exchanging unit to exchange heat
with outdoor air.
[0015] The outdoor unit may include a four-way valve to guide the
refrigerant discharged from the compressor to one of the plurality
of indoor heat-exchanging units and the outdoor heat-exchanging
unit, and an outdoor expansion valve to decompress and expand
refrigerant prior to being introduced into the outdoor
heat-exchanging unit at the time of heating.
[0016] The indoor expansion valve and the outdoor expansion valve
may be formed in the form of electronic valves capable of adjusting
degrees of opening.
[0017] The air conditioner may include: a first refrigerant pipe to
guide the refrigerant discharged from the compressor to the
four-way valve; a second refrigerant pipe connecting the four-way
valve to the outdoor heat-exchanging unit; a third refrigerant pipe
connecting the four-way valve to the indoor heat-exchanging unit; a
fourth refrigerant pipe connecting the four-way valve to the
compressor to guide the refrigerant from the four-way valve to the
compressor; and a fifth refrigerant pipe connecting the indoor
heat-exchanging unit to the outdoor heat-exchanging unit. The third
refrigerant pipe is connected to each of the plurality of indoor
heat-exchanging units through a plurality of third branch
refrigerant pipes, and the fifth refrigerant pipe is connected to
each of the plurality of indoor heat-exchanging units through a
plurality of fifth branch refrigerant pipes.
[0018] The plurality of indoor outlets each may be
upwardly/downwardly disposed at a front surface of the indoor unit
body while spaced apart to each other.
[0019] The plurality of indoor outlets may be disposed toward
left/right sides at a front surface of the indoor unit body while
spaced apart to each other.
[0020] In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, an
air conditioner includes an indoor unit and an outdoor unit. The
indoor unit may be disposed in an inside space. The outdoor unit
may be disposed in an outdoor space and connected to the indoor
unit through refrigerant pipes. The indoor unit may include an
indoor unit body forming an external appearance of the indoor unit
and provided with a plurality of indoor outlets; and one indoor
heat-exchanging unit disposed inside the indoor unit body such that
the indoor heat-exchanging unit corresponds to the plurality of
indoor outlets. The indoor heat-exchanging unit may include a
plurality of heat-exchangers corresponding to the plurality of
indoor outlets, respectively.
[0021] The indoor unit may include a plurality of expansion valves
to decompress and expand each refrigerant prior to being introduced
into the plurality of heat-exchangers at the time of cooling.
[0022] The outdoor unit comprises a compressor to compress the
refrigerant; an outdoor heat-exchanging unit to exchange heat with
outdoor air; a four-way valve to guide the refrigerant discharged
from the compressor to one of the plurality of exchangers and the
outdoor heat-exchanging unit; and an outdoor expansion valve to
decompress and expand refrigerant prior to being introduced into
the outdoor heat-exchanging unit at the time of heating.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] These and/or other aspects of the disclosure will become
apparent and more readily appreciated from the following
description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings of which:
[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an air conditioner in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0025] FIG. 2 is a cooling cycle of the air conditioner in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a cooling cycle of an air conditioner in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0027] FIG. 4 is a schematic view of an air conditioner in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0028] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of
the present disclosure, examples of which are illustrated in the
accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to
like elements throughout.
[0029] As illustrated on FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, an air conditioner in
accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure includes an
indoor unit 10 disposed in an indoor space and an outdoor unit 20
disposed in an outdoor space.
[0030] The indoor unit 10 includes an indoor unit body 11 forming
an external appearance thereof, indoor heat-exchanging units 12A,
12B, and 12C to heat-exchange with indoor air, indoor expansion
valves 13A, 13B, and 13C to decompress and expand refrigerant
guided into the indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C at
the time of cooling, and indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C to circulate
the indoor air to heat-exchange with the indoor heat-exchanging
units 12A, 12B, and 12C.
[0031] The indoor unit body 11 is provided to accommodate the
indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C and the indoor
expansion valves 13A, 13B, and 13C at an inside thereof. The indoor
unit body 11 is provided with an indoor inlet 11d to have the
indoor air inlet inside the indoor unit body 11, and indoor outlets
11a, 11b, and 11c to have the air heat-exchanged with the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C outlet into the indoor
space.
[0032] The indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c are provided in a
plurality of units at the indoor unit body 11 such that the each of
the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c may outlet air toward a
plurality of locations. The three units of the indoor outlets 11a,
11b, and 11c in the present embodiment are upwardly/downwardly, or
vertically, disposed at a front surface of the indoor unit body 11
while spaced apart from each other, and may outlet, or exhaust, air
at different heights. That is, the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c
include an upper indoor outlet 11a, a middle indoor outlet 11b, and
a lower indoor outlet 11c.
[0033] The three units of the indoor heat-exchanging units 12A,
12B, and 12C and the indoor expansion valves 13A, 13B, and 13C is
each provided in a plurality of units to correspond to the
plurality of the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c. In the present
embodiment, the three units of the indoor heat-exchanging units
12A, 12B, and 12C and the three units of the indoor expansion
valves 13A, 13B, and 13C are included to correspond to the three
units of the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c. That is, the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C include an upper indoor
heat-exchanging unit 12A, a middle indoor heat-exchanging unit 12B,
and a lower indoor heat-exchanging unit 12C.
[0034] The indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C provided in a plurality of
units is each disposed at an inner side of the each of the
plurality of indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c, so that the air
passed through the plurality of the indoor heat-exchanging units
12A, 12B, and 12C may be outlet through the each of the
corresponding indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c. In the present
embodiment, the indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C are provided in three
units to correspond to the three units of the indoor outlets 11a,
11b, and 11c. That is, the indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C include an
upper indoor fan 14A, a middle indoor fan 14B, and a lower indoor
fan 14C.
[0035] The outdoor unit 20 includes an outdoor unit body 21, a
compressor 22 to compress refrigerant, an outdoor heat-exchanging
apparatus 24 to heat-exchange with outdoor air, a four-way valve 23
provided such that the refrigerant discharged from the compressor
22 may selectively be delivered to one of the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C and the outdoor
heat-exchanging apparatus 24, an outdoor expansion valve 25 to
decompress and expand the refrigerant introduced into the outdoor
heat-exchanging apparatus 24 prior to inletting the refrigerant
into the outdoor heat-exchanging apparatus 24 at the time of
heating, and an outdoor fan 26 provided such that the outdoor
heat-exchanging apparatus 24 may heat-exchange with outdoor
air.
[0036] The outdoor unit body 21 includes the compressor 22, the
outdoor heat-exchanging apparatus 24, the four-way valve 23, and
the outdoor expansion valve 25, all of which are described above,
at an inside thereof, and the outdoor unit body 21 is provided with
an outdoor inlet 21a configured to have outdoor air inlet inside
the outdoor unit body 21 and an outdoor outlet 21b configured to
have the air heat-exchanged with the outdoor heat-exchanging unit
24 outlet again to an outdoor space.
[0037] Therefore, the outdoor air is inlet through the indoor inlet
21 a by a suction force and a blowing force that are generated from
the outdoor fan 26, and then is discharged again to an outdoor
space through the outdoor outlet 21b after heat-exchanging with the
outdoor heat-exchanging unit 24.
[0038] The above-mentioned plurality of indoor expansion valves
13A, 13B, and 13C and the outdoor expansion valve 25 are formed in
the form of electronic valves capable of adjusting degrees of
opening, and are configured to adjust the amount of the refrigerant
introduced into the indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and
12C.
[0039] The above-described indoor unit 10 is provided with the
three units of the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c at the indoor
unit body 11, and as the three units of the indoor heat-exchanging
units 12A, 12B, and 12C and the three units of the indoor expansion
valves 13A, 13B, and 13C are provided at an inside the indoor unit
body 11 to correspond to the each of the three units of the indoor
outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c, the three units of the indoor outlets
11a, 11b, and 11c may simultaneously discharged air having
different temperatures.
[0040] As one example, by having a relatively large amount of
refrigerant decompressed and expanded at the indoor expansion valve
13A positioned at an upper side, air having relatively lower
temperature may be outlet at the indoor outlet 11a positioned at an
upper side, and by having a relatively small amount of refrigerant
decompressed and expanded at the indoor expansion valves 13B and
13C positioned at middle and lower sides, air having relatively
higher temperature is discharged at the indoor outlets 11b and 11c
provided at middle and lower sides, an indoor space is adequately
cooled while the air having lower temperature is prevented from
being directly in contact with a user.
[0041] In addition, the air conditioner as such may selectively
outlet air at a portion of the plurality of indoor outlets 11a,
11b, and 11c according to the selection of a user.
[0042] For example, in a case when air is discharged from the
middle indoor outlet 11b and the lower indoor outlet 11c, the upper
indoor fan 14A is stopped, and the upper indoor expansion valve
13A, by shutting off a flow path formed at an inside thereof, may
not have refrigerant delivered at the upper indoor heat-exchanging
unit 12A.
[0043] Together with the above, by driving the middle indoor fan
14B and the lower indoor fan 14C, the middle indoor expansion valve
13B and the lower indoor expansion valve 13C are provided to open
flow paths formed at insides thereof at proper degrees of opening,
so that refrigerant may be delivered at the middle indoor
heat-exchanging unit 12B and the lower indoor heat-exchanging unit
12C after the refrigerant is decompressed and expanded.
[0044] As the above, when the indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C and the
indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C are controlled, air
is not outlet from the upper indoor outlet 11a, as the air
heat-exchanged with the middle indoor heat-exchanging unit 12B is
discharged at the middle indoor outlet 11b, the air heat-exchanged
with the lower indoor heat-exchanging unit 12C is discharged at the
lower indoor outlet 11c.
[0045] In addition, in a case when air is discharged only from the
upper indoor outlet 11a and the middle indoor outlet 11b, the lower
indoor fan 14C is stopped, and the lower indoor expansion valve
13C, by shutting off a flow path formed at an inside thereof, may
not have refrigerant delivered at the lower indoor heat-exchanging
unit 12C.
[0046] Together with the above, by driving the upper indoor fan 14A
and the middle indoor fan 14B, the upper indoor expansion valve 13A
and the middle indoor expansion valve 13B are provided to open flow
paths formed at insides thereof at proper degrees of opening, so
that refrigerant may be delivered at the upper indoor
heat-exchanging unit 12A and the middle indoor heat-exchanging unit
12B after the refrigerant is decompressed and expanded.
[0047] As the above, when the indoor fans 14A, 14B, and 14C and the
indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C are controlled, air
is not outlet from the lower indoor outlet 11c, as the air
heat-exchanged with the upper indoor heat-exchanging unit 12A is
discharged at the upper indoor outlet 11a, the air heat-exchanged
with the middle indoor heat-exchanging unit 12B is discharged at
the middle indoor outlet 11b.
[0048] In addition, by use of the identical method as the above,
air may be outlet only from the upper indoor outlet 11a and the
lower indoor outlet 11c, while air is not outlet from the middle
indoor outlet 11b.
[0049] In addition, even in a case when air is not discharged from
a portion of the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c, in a case when
air is discharged through the plurality of indoor outlets 11a, 11b,
and 11c, the air that is discharged through the plurality of indoor
outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c may be controlled to be outlet at
different temperatures.
[0050] The inside structure of the outdoor unit 20 and the indoor
unit 10 are connected to each other though a plurality of
refrigerant pipes P1 to P5.
[0051] The refrigerant pipes P1 to P5 include a refrigerant pipe P1
to guide the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 22 to the
four-way valve 23, a second refrigerant pipe P2 to connect the
four-way valve 23 to the outdoor heat-exchanging unit 24, a third
refrigerant pipe P3 to connect the four-way valve 23 to the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C, a fourth refrigerant pipe
P4 to guide the refrigerant from the four-way valve 23 to the
compressor 24, and a fifth refrigerant pipe P5 to connect the
indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C to the outdoor
heat-exchanging unit 24. At this time, as described above, the
three units of the indoor heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C
are provided, and thus the third refrigerant pipe P3 is connected
to the each of the three units of the indoor heat-exchanging units
12A, 12B, and 12C through three units of third branch refrigerant
pipes P3-1, P3-2, and P3-3, and the fifth refrigerant pipe P5 is
connected to the each of the three units of the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C through three units of
fifth branch refrigerant pipes P5-1, P5-2, and P5-3.
[0052] The above-described indoor expansion valves 13A, 13B, and
13C are installed at the fifth branch refrigerant pipes P5-1, P5-2,
and P5-3, respectively, and may have refrigerant decompressed and
expanded prior to introducing the refrigerant into the indoor
heat-exchanging units 12A, 12B, and 12C at the time of cooling, and
at the time of heating, the refrigerant is passed through as is. As
the outdoor expansion valve 25 is installed at the fifth
refrigerant pipe P5, the refrigerant is decompressed and expanded
prior to being introduced into the outdoor heat-exchanging unit 24
at the time of heating, and at the time of cooling, the refrigerant
is passed through as is.
[0053] In the present embodiment, the indoor heat-exchanging units
12A, 12B, and 12C include a plurality of units thereof to
correspond to the plurality of indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c,
but are not limited hereto. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the upper,
middle, and lower indoor heat-exchanging units 12 may each be
provided to form each of a first heat-exchanging unit 12a, a second
heat-exchanging unit 12b, and a third heat-exchanging unit 12c,
while one of the indoor heat-exchanging units 12 is provided to be
included at the indoor unit body 11. The first heat-exchanging unit
12a, the second heat-exchanging unit 12b, and the third
heat-exchanging unit 12c may be provided separately, or may be
provided as an assembly of heat-exchanging units.
[0054] The each of the third branch refrigerant pipes P3-1, P3-2,
and P3-3 and the each of the fifth branch refrigerant pipes P5-1,
P5-2, and P5-3 is connected to the first heat-exchanging unit 12a,
the second heat-exchanging unit 12b, and the third heat-exchanging
unit 12c of the indoor heat-exchanging unit 12 structured as the
above, respectively, and the indoor expansion valves 13A, 13B, and
13C are disposed at the fifth branch refrigerant pipes P5-1, P5-2,
and P5-3, respectively, and by controlling the amount of flow of
the refrigerant introduced into the first heat-exchanging unit 12a,
the second heat-exchanging unit 12b, and the third heat-exchanging
unit 12c, the air passing through the each heat-exchanging unit may
cool the air passing through the each portion at different
temperatures, so that the air having different temperatures may be
simultaneously discharged at the indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and
11c.
[0055] In addition, in the present embodiment, the indoor unit body
11 is extended upwardly/downwardly, and the three units of the
indoor outlets 11a, 11b, and 11c are upwardly/downwardly formed at
a front surface of the indoor unit body 11 while spaced apart to
each other, but are not limited hereto, and as illustrated on FIG.
4, an indoor unit body 11-1 of an indoor unit 10-1 may be
extendedly formed toward left/right sides, and indoor outlets 11e
and 11f may be disposed toward left/right sides while spaced apart
from each other. In addition, as illustrated, the number of the
indoor outlets 11e and 11f is provided to be two units, and may be
variously formed. As the above, in a case when the indoor outlets
11e and 11f are disposed toward left/right sides while spaced apart
from each other, the both spaces at the left/right sides may be
cooled at different temperatures from each other.
[0056] In addition, in the present embodiment, the air conditioner
is configured to perform a cooling and a heating by having the
four-way valve 23, but is not limited hereto, and by deleting the
structure corresponding to the four-way valve, the indoor
heat-exchanging unit may be provided to operate as an evaporator
while the outdoor heat-exchanging unit may be provided to operate
as an condenser, so that the air conditioner may perform only a
cooling.
[0057] As described above, an air conditioner includes a plurality
of indoor outlets provided at an indoor unit body and a plurality
of indoor heat-exchanging units corresponding to the plurality of
indoor outlets, respectively, thereby discharging air having
different temperatures through the plurality of indoor outlets.
[0058] Although a few embodiments of the present disclosure have
been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled
in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without
departing from the principles and spirit of the disclosure, the
scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
* * * * *