Variable capacity rotary compressor with pressure adjustment device

Abstract

A variable capacity rotary compressor capable of equalizing an interior pressure (i.e., discharge pressure) of a hermetically sealed container with an interior pressure of a compression chamber where an idling operation is performed, resulting in a reduction of rotation resistance of a rotary shaft. The variable capacity rotary compressor includes housings disposed in the hermetically sealed container and having an interior space partitioned by intermediate plates into first and second compression chambers with different capacities, a rotary shaft rotatably disposed in the two compression chambers, eccentric units to selectively induce a compression operation in one of the two compression chambers depending on a rotational direction of the rotary shaft, and a pressure adjustment unit to apply the discharge pressure of the hermetically sealed container to one of the compression chambers where the idling operation is performed. The intermediate plates include first and second intermediate plates stacked one above another, and the pressure adjustment unit is interposed between the first and second intermediate plates.