Lg Electronics Inc.

Il Nahm Hwang

Ki Bum Kim

Sang Ho Lee

Seok Ho Yoon

Yoon Been Lee

Young Min Park

Sung Oh Choi

Sung Chun Kim

Jong Han Park

Ho Jong Jeong

Dong Jun Yang

Sai Kee Oh

Se Dong Chang

Pil Hyun Yoon

Baik Young Chung

Jin Ha Choi

Do Yong Ha

Won Chul Kang

A heat pump capable of performing heating and cooling simultaneously is provided. The heat pump includes a compressor, indoor devices that heat or cool an indoor space, outdoor heat exchangers, and switching devices. The outdoor heat exchangers are configured to individually operate as a condenser or an evaporator depending on a ratio of heating to cooling of the indoor devices. When an operation mode is changed, continuous heating and cooling is performed without stopping the system.

Simultaneous heating/cooling multi air conditioner

A method for controlling a multi-unit air conditioning system adapted to cool or heat room spaces while passing a refrigerant in one direction or in a reverse direction is disclosed. In the method, which is applied to a multi-unit air conditioning system including at least three compressors, when a compressor re-operation is repeatedly carried out after all of the compressors have been turned off, to turn on again at least one of the compressors, repetition of the compressor re-operation is carried out for a predetermined number of different orders in such a manner that at least one of the compressors is turned on first in an associated order of the repeated compressor re-operation.

Method for controlling multi-unit air conditioning system

Provided is an air conditioner, particularly, an apparatus and method for controlling a super-heating degree in a heat pump system for preventing a liquid refrigerant from flowing into a compressor. The method includes: operating the heat pump system; receiving a present outdoor temperature, a pipe absorption temperature and a low pressure value of a compressor, respectively; computing a present absorption super-heating degree from a difference between the absorption temperature of the compressor and a saturated temperature at a low pressure side; and comparing an targeted absorption super-heating degree set in advance, with the computed present absorption super-heating degree according to the received outdoor temperature, and controlling the system so that the present absorption super-heating degree may follow the targeted absorption super-heating degree.

Apparatus and method for controlling super-heating degree in heat pump system

A multi-unit air conditioner and a method for controlling the same are disclosed which are capable of preventing continuous introduction of a refrigerant into indoor units in an OFF state where the indoor units can be independently powered on or off, thereby preventing a degradation in the cooling and heating efficiencies. The air conditioner includes a plurality of indoor units each including a power controller adapted to independently power on or off an associated one of the indoor units, an outdoor unit connected with the indoor units, the outdoor unit including a microcomputer for controlling an operation of the outdoor unit, and enabling the outdoor unit to communicate with the indoor units, and a controller for determining whether each of the indoor units is in a normal operation state or in a non-operation state, and controlling an operation of a distributor in accordance with the result of the determination.

Multi-unit air conditioner and method for controlling the same

Disclosed is an apparatus and method for preventing liquid refrigerant accumulation in an accumulator of an outdoor unit of an air conditioner. The method includes the steps of: determining a state of a compressor; if the compressor is in standby mode or off state, turning on a four-way valve; determining whether the state of the compressor in standby mode or off state continues longer than a predetermined amount of time; and if the state of the compressor continues longer than the predetermined amount of time, closing an expansion valve. Particularly, high-pressure refrigerant flows in the closed expansion valve while low-pressure refrigerant flows in a check valve through the four-way valve. The apparatus includes a suction pipe connected to spray oil of the accumulator to the compressor; a liquid recovery pipe with one end being connected to the suction pipe and the other end being connected to the accumulator; and a liquid recovery valve for controlling opening/closing of the liquid recovery pipe, in which a compressor of the air conditioner in cooling or heating mode is operated and a liquid recovery valve for controlling a liquid recovery pipe connected to the compressor and an accumulator is opened to reduce oil in the accumulator. According to the present invention, when the compressor is off, it is possible to prevent liquid refrigerant accumulation by changing refrigerant flow line to the accumulator and the refrigerant at the lower end of the accumulator can be recovered.

Apparatus for preventing liquid refrigerant accumulation of air conditioner and method thereof

Disclosed is a method for controlling an air conditioner. In particular, driving modes of elements, namely sucking/discharge compressure, of the compressor in operation are determined so that variable means are controlled to ensure for the elements of the compressor to be within predetermined value ranges in safe area. According to the present invention, vibrations/noises that usually occur when the compressor is in unstable area are greatly reduced and thus, the compressor can be protected from damages.

Method for controlling air conditioner

Disclosed herein is a control method for a multiple heat pump. In the control method, when one of multiple indoor units operates in the heating mode and the other indoor units shut down, electronic expansion valves of the shutdown indoor units are controlled to have an opening degree higher than a standard opening degree if an outlet temperature of compressors is higher than a preset temperature, so as to permit a liquid refrigerant, remaining in the shutdown indoor units, to be more readily recovered to the compressors. This eliminates a refrigerant shortage phenomenon of the compressors and prevents deterioration of heating performance as well as reduction of life-span of the compressors.

Control method for multiple heat pump

A refrigerant bypassing and filtering apparatus of an air conditioner is disclosed which is capable of effectively removing foreign matter such as slag produced in a refrigerant line, not only when the air conditioner is initially operated, but also during normal operation of the air conditioner. The apparatus includes at least one bypass line adapted to guide a refrigerant to bypass a main line through which the refrigerant flows between an outdoor unit and an indoor unit, a strainer arranged at the bypass line, a first valve arranged at the main line between opposite ends of the bypass line connected to the main line, and second valves arranged at the bypass line.

Refrigerant bypassing and filtering apparatus of air conditioner and method for controlling the same

Disclosed herein is a control method for four-way valves of a multiple heat pump. In the control method, if even at least one of four-way valves of respective outdoor units is not switched to a desired mode upon switching of all of the four-way valves to the desired mode, the other four-way valves, switched to the desired mode, is switched to an opposite direction of the desired mode, and then all of the four-way valves are switched again to the desired mode, thereby simply and rapidly correcting switching error of the four-way valves, resulting in normal operation of the multiple heat pump.

Control method for four-way valve of multiple heat pump

Multi-unit air conditioner including an outdoor unit including a flow path control valve for controlling a flow path of refrigerant from a compressor, outdoor heat exchanger having one side in communication with the flow path control valve, a first bypass pipeline having one end connected to the first pipeline which makes the flow path control valve and the outdoor heat exchanger to be in communication, and the other end connected to the second pipeline connected to the other end of the outdoor heat exchanger, and a flow rate control valve provided on the first bypass pipeline for controlling a flow rate of the refrigerant passing through the first bypass pipeline, an indoor unit having an indoor heat exchanger and indoor electronic expansion valve installed in each of rooms, a distributor for selective distribution of the refrigerant received through one of two pipelines connected to the outdoor unit to the indoor units, and returning to the outdoor unit through the other one pipeline, and controlling means for measuring a gas/liquid mixing ratio of the refrigerant introduced into the distributor, the refrigerant having joined after respectively passing through the first bypass pipeline and the outdoor heat exchanger, for controlling an opening of the flow rate control valve, to control the mixing ratio.

Multi-unit air conditioner and method for controlling the same, the multi-unit air conditioner including a plurality of outdoor heat exchangers, a plurality of outdoor fans for cooling the outdoor heat exchangers, and control means for controlling rotation speeds of the outdoor fans, to control a gas/liquid refrigerant mixing ratio introduced into the gas-liquid separator through the outdoor heat exchangers, thereby optimizing the mixing ratio of the refrigerant introduced to a gas-liquid separator proper to an operation condition, for improving an air conditioning efficiency. The control means including a temperature sensor for measuring a temperature of refrigerant introduced from the outdoor heat exchangers into the gas-liquid separator, and a microcomputer for comparing a refrigerant temperature measured with the temperature sensor and a preset refrigerant temperature, to detect a refrigerant mixing ratio at the outdoor unit piping system, and controlling rotation speeds of the outdoor fans so that detected refrigerant mixing ratios are the same with refrigerant mixing ratios preset to be proper to operation conditions, respectively.

Growing community of inventors

Ansan-si, South Korea

Il Nahm Hwang