Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Tadahiko Hayakumo

Tsunehiko Todoroki

Katsumi Fukuda

Masaharu Ebihara

The disclosure is directed to an air flow direction control device for an air conditioner such as a room air conditioner, which includes a discharge direction changing blade for controlling air flow discharge direction, a shape memory alloy or SMA member for rotating the blade in one direction and a bias spring for urging the blade in the other direction, a lever arm urged to contact a shaft of the blade and a releasing mechanism for releasing the lever arm from its contact with the shaft. According to the present invention, the blasted air temperature detecting unit, motor for driving the blade, control unit for controlling and driving the motor, etc. conventionally required may be dispensed with for reduction in cost, and furthermore, it becomes possible to properly alter the air flow discharging direction according to the temperatures of the blasted air.

Discharge direction control device for air conditioner

A thermally actuated device comprising a shape memory alloy which has an improved temperature response. The shape memory alloy is combined with a bias load to provide a two-way action and the temperature-deflection relationship at an operating temperature range is such that the shear strain of the shape memory alloy corresponding to the point of transit from a first shape recovery process to a second shape recovery process resulting from the heating is smaller than that corresponding to the point of termination of a first strain induced process by the counteracting bias load resulting from the cooling. The difference between said two sheer strains is restricted to the range of operating strain of the shape memory alloy.

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Shiga, Japan

Tadahiko Hayakumo