Window Air Conditioner

The present application is submitted based on and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application Nos. 202210602504.5 and 202221359387.6, both filed on May 30, 2022, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present disclosure relates to the field of air conditioning technologies, and more particularly, to a window air conditioner.

A window air conditioner in the related art is an integrated air conditioner that may be mounted for use at a window opening. In order to meet noise reduction requirements, some window air conditioners are designed in a form of a saddle with an open bottom groove between an outdoor unit and an indoor unit, in order to allow the window air conditioners to be stuck on a window sill using the groove and block noise of an outdoor unit by a physical wall. However, such window air conditioner has a fixed configuration with pipe crossing and wire crossing from a top of the groove. Nevertheless, if this window air conditioner is improved into a deformable form, it is difficult to meet requirements for reliable pipe crossing or reliable wire crossing.

The present disclosure aims to solve at least one of the technical problems in the related art. To this end, the present disclosure is to provide a window air conditioner, capable of reducing a difficulty of pipe routing or wire routing and ensuring reliability of the pipe routing or the wire routing while meeting a deformable requirement.

A window air conditioner according to embodiments of the present disclosure includes an outdoor unit component, an indoor unit component, a transitional shielding member, and a pipeline assembly. The outdoor unit component includes an outdoor unit body. The indoor unit component includes an indoor unit body. The indoor unit component is rotatably connected to the outdoor unit component. The transitional shielding member is arranged at a rotational connection between the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component, and the transitional shielding member cooperates with the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component to form a passage. The pipeline assembly passes through the passage and is connected to the indoor unit body and the outdoor unit body. Therefore, the window air conditioner according to the embodiments of the present disclosure can reduce the difficulty of the pipe routing or the wire routing and ensure reliability of the pipe routing or the wire routing while meeting the deformable requirement.

In some embodiments, the transitional shielding member is movable relative to the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component. The transitional shielding member participates in forming a first communication opening and a second communication opening. The passage is in communication with the indoor unit body via the first communication opening, and the passage is in communication with the outdoor unit body via the second communication opening. During a relative rotation of the indoor unit component to the outdoor unit component, the first communication opening and the second communication opening are constantly in an open state. The pipeline assembly passes through the passage through the first communication opening and the second communication opening.

In some embodiments, the transitional shielding member includes a retractable shielding member. The retractable shielding member is connected to each of the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component, and the retractable shielding member is deployed or retracted with the relative rotation of the indoor unit component to the outdoor unit component.

In some embodiments, the indoor unit component includes a first shielding housing located at the rotational connection. The outdoor unit component includes a second shielding housing located at the rotational connection. The first shielding housing and the second shielding housing are arranged in a transverse direction and rotatably connected to each other. At least one of the first shielding housing or the second shielding housing has an avoidance space configured to avoid the retractable shielding member.

In some embodiments, the transitional shielding member includes a shielding shell. The shielding shell is rotatable relative to the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component.

In some embodiments, the indoor unit component and the outdoor unit component are pivotally connected to each other by a hinge assembly to rotate relatively about a unique pivot axis extending in a transverse direction. The shielding shell includes a top shell extending in the transverse direction and configured to shield above the hinge assembly. The shielding shell further includes an end shell connected to each of two transverse ends of the top shell. The end shell is rotatably and pivotally connected to the hinge assembly about the pivot axis.

In some embodiments, the first communication opening is formed between an inner side edge of the top shell and the indoor unit component. The second communication opening is formed between an outer side edge of the top shell and the outdoor unit component. The indoor unit component includes a first flange adapted to stop against an outer side of the inner side edge. The outdoor unit component includes a second flange adapted to stop against an inner side of the outer side edge.

In some embodiments, the hinge assembly includes a first articulation member arranged at the indoor unit component and a second articulation member arranged at the outdoor unit component. The second articulation member is hinged to the first articulation member to be reciprocally rotatable between a first angular position and a second angular position. When the second articulation member rotates to a third angular position between the first angular position and the second angular position from the first angular position, the second articulation member is in contact with the outer side edge to push the shielding shell to rotate synchronously towards the second angular position.

In some embodiments, when the second articulation member rotates to the third angular position from the second angular position, the second flange is in contact with the outer side edge to pull the shielding shell to rotate synchronously with the second articulation member towards the first angular position for resetting.

In some embodiments, the indoor unit component has at least one first pipeline clamp. The outdoor unit component has at least one second pipeline clamp. The pipeline assembly is fit with each of the first pipeline clamp and the second pipeline clamp.

In some embodiments, the indoor unit component includes a connection support adapted to pass through a window opening. The connection support has an outer end extending to be pivotally connected to an upper inner end of the outdoor unit body, to enable the outdoor unit body to rotate about a unique pivot axis extending in a transverse direction and located at the upper inner end of the outdoor unit body. An extending direction of the pipeline assembly in the connection support is changed at least once.

In some embodiments, the connection support and the indoor unit body are slidable relative to each other in an inward-outward direction. The pipeline assembly extends along a loop in the connection support.

Additional aspects and advantages of present disclosure will be provided at least in part in the following description, or will become apparent in part from the following description, or can be learned from the practice of the present disclosure.

The embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to examples thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, throughout which same or similar elements, or elements having same or similar functions, are denoted by same or similar reference numerals. The embodiments described below with reference to the drawings are illustrative only, and are intended to explain rather than limit the present disclosure.

Many different embodiments or examples according to the present disclosure are used to realize different structures of the present disclosure. To simplify the present disclosure, components and settings in specific examples are described below. Of course, they are merely exemplary and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. Moreover, the present disclosure may repeat reference numbers and/or reference letters in different examples. Such repetition is for purposes of simplicity and clarity and is not in itself indicative of a relationship among the various embodiments and/or settings discussed. In addition, the present disclosure provides examples of various specific processes and materials, but those skilled in the art may recognize application of other processes and/or use of other materials.

A window air conditioneraccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure is described below with reference to the drawings.

As illustrated in, a window air conditionerincludes an indoor unit componentand an outdoor unit component. The indoor unit componentincludes an indoor unit body. The outdoor unit componentincludes an outdoor unit body. The outdoor unit bodyand the indoor unit bodyof the window air conditionerare spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction, to enable the window air conditionerto have a use configuration in which the indoor unit bodyis located at an indoor side and the outdoor unit bodyis located at an outdoor side.

It should be noted that the window air conditionerdescribed herein is adapted to be arranged for use at the window opening. An inward-outward direction of the window opening(i.e., a direction passing through the window opening) is a “longitudinal direction”; a width direction of the window openingis a “transverse direction”; and a height direction of the window openingis a “vertical direction.” In short, the indoor unit bodyand the outdoor unit bodyare spaced apart from each other in an inward-outward direction when the window air conditioneris in the use configuration (such as a state illustrated in). In this case, the indoor unit bodyis arranged at the indoor side for adjusting an indoor environment temperature and the like, and the outdoor unit bodyis arranged at the outdoor side for heat exchange with an outdoor environment.

In some optional examples, the indoor unit bodymay include an indoor side heat exchanger, an indoor side fan, etc., and the outdoor unit bodymay include a compressor, an outdoor side heat exchanger, an outdoor side fan, etc. The indoor unit bodyis connected to the outdoor unit bodyvia a refrigerant pipeline, and therefore the indoor side heat exchanger, the outdoor side heat exchanger, the compressor, etc. constitute a refrigerant circulation system to realize a refrigeration cycle or a heating cycle. Of course, the present disclosure is not limited to thereto. For example, in some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the indoor side fan, the outdoor side fan, etc. may also be omitted, and no more examples are given herein.

As illustrated in, the indoor unit componentis rotatably connected to the outdoor unit componentto enable the outdoor unit componentto rotate about the rotational connection relative to the indoor unit component. The expression “rotatably connected” should be understood in a broad sense and is not limited to being rotatable about an axis. For example, it may refer to rotating about an axis (such as a pivot axis L illustrated in) by means of an articulated connection. For another example, it may refer to rotating about two axes by means of a linkage connection. In short, the outdoor unit componentis rotatable about the rotational connection relative to the indoor unit component, to enable the window air conditionerto change its configuration to meet different practical requirements.

For example, mounting requirements, handling requirements, packaging requirements, or transportation requirements, or the like of the window air conditionerare met by changing the configuration of the window air conditioner. As a result, the window air conditionerdoes not need to be restricted by the use configuration of the window air conditioner(for example, the configuration illustrated in) in scenarios such as mounting, handling, packaging, transportation, or the like, and can realized these scenarios by flexibly changing the configuration of the window air conditioner(for example, changing into a configuration illustrated inor).

For example, with reference to, during a mounting of the window air conditioner, a bottom of the outdoor unit bodymay be raised by rotating the outdoor unit component. Therefore, the outdoor unit bodycan be easily pushed from the indoor side through the window openingto the outdoor side. With reference to, after the outdoor unit bodyis pushed to the outdoor side, the bottom of the outdoor unit bodyis lowered to a normal position to meet normal use requirements.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, as illustrated in, the window air conditionerfurther includes a transitional shielding member. The transitional shielding memberis arranged at a rotational connection between the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component(e.g., a position R illustrated in). The transitional shielding membercooperates with the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentto form a passage. As illustrated in, the window air conditionerfurther includes a pipeline assembly. For example, the pipeline assemblyincludes at least one of a refrigerant pipe, a water pipe, or an electric wire. The pipeline assemblypasses through the passagethrough a first communication openingand a second communication opening, and is connected to the indoor unit bodyand the outdoor unit body. For example, the pipeline assemblymay have an inner end connected to the indoor unit body, and an outer end extending into the passagethrough the first communication openingand connected to the outdoor unit bodythrough the second communication opening.

Therefore, there is no need for piping or wiring separately outside the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component, eliminating any need for a subsequent mounting operation of piping or wiring. In this way, mounting efficiency of the window air conditioneris improved. Moreover, the transitional shielding membermay serve to protect the pipeline assembly, to improve a service life and operating reliability of the pipeline assembly.

In some embodiments, the transitional shielding memberis movable (such as deforming or moving) relative to the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component. The transitional shielding memberparticipates in forming a first communication opening. The passageis in communication with the indoor unit bodyvia the first communication opening. The transitional shielding memberfurther participates in forming a second communication opening. The passageis in communication with the outdoor unit bodyvia the second communication opening. During a relative rotation of the indoor unit componentto the outdoor unit component, the first communication openingand the second communication openingare constantly in an open state.

Thus, by providing the transitional shielding memberand arranging the transitional shielding memberto be movable (such as deforming or moving) relative to the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component, to form the first communication openingand the second communication openingthat are constantly opened, interference and damage to the pipeline assemblycaused by the relative rotation of the indoor unit componentto the outdoor unit componentcan be avoided to further improve operating reliability of the pipeline assembly.

It should be noted that there are varieties of ways to arrange the transitional shielding member. For example, two simple optional embodiments will be mainly introduced below.

As illustrated in, the transitional shielding memberincludes a retractable shielding memberarranged at the connection between the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component. The retractable shielding memberis connected to each of the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component, and the retractable shielding memberis deployed or retracted with the relative rotation of the indoor unit componentto the outdoor unit component. That is, the retractable shielding memberis configured to form the passageto shield a corresponding part of the pipeline assembly.

For example, the retractable shielding membermay be in a form of a folding fan and the like. Thus, when the outdoor unit componentand the indoor unit componentrotate relatively, the retractable shielding membermay be folded without affecting the pipeline assembly.

At this time, a part of the passagecorresponding to a connection between the retractable shielding memberand the indoor unit componentmay be set as the first communication opening, and a part of the passagecorresponding to a connection between the retractable shielding memberand the outdoor unit componentmay be set as the second communication opening. As such, when the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentrotate relatively, the retractable shielding membercan be deployed and retracted to avoid the pipeline assembly, to ensure that the first communication openingand the second communication openingare constantly in an open state. Thus, this arrangement can simply and effectively achieve that the first communication openingand the second communication openingare constantly in an open state during a relative rotation of the indoor unit componentto the outdoor unit component.

Further, as illustrated in, the indoor unit componentincludes a first shielding housinglocated at the rotational connection, and the outdoor unit componentincludes a second shielding housinglocated at the rotational connection. The first shielding housingand the second shielding housingare arranged in a transverse direction and rotationally connected to each other. At least one of the first shielding housingor the second shielding housinghas an avoidance spaceconfigured to avoid the retractable shielding member.

Thus, providing the first shielding housingand the second shielding housingcan realize the rotational connection between the indoor unit componentand the outdoor uniton the one hand and can provide shielding and protection on the other hand; and furthermore, it can improve structural strength and reliability of the rotational connection as well as a rotation support capacity. Moreover, providing the avoidance spaceconfigured to avoid the retractable shielding memberat at least one of the first shielding housingor the second shielding housingcan increase a transverse coverage area of each of the first shielding housingand the second shielding housing, and thus further improve the structural strength.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the first shielding housingand the second shielding housingeach include a top plate extending in the transverse direction, and a length direction of the top plate is in the transverse direction. A side plate is arranged at each of two ends of the top plate in a length direction of the top plate, and the side plate is perpendicular to a top cover of an arc shape. Side plates of the first shielding housingand the second shielding housingclose towards each other are connected by a rotary shaft (an ordinary rotary shaft or a damping rotary shaft) or a bearing, to realize the relative rotation of the indoor unit componentto the outdoor unit component.

The avoidance spacemay be formed at the top plate and filled with the retractable shielding member, and the retractable shielding memberhas an inner end connected to the indoor unit componentand an outer end connected to the outdoor unit component. A cross section of the top plate may be in upward convex arc-shape. Therefore, when the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentrotate relatively, the top plate can be easily hidden and is not prone to interference.

As illustrated in, the transitional shielding memberincludes a shielding shell. The shielding shellis arranged at the rotational connection between the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component. The shielding shellis rotatable relative to the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit component. The shielding shellis configured to form the through channel. Therefore, since the shielding shellis not fixedly connected to the indoor unit componentor the outdoor unit component, when one of the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentserving as a rotating component rotates relative to another one of indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentserving as a stationary component, the shielding shellneither rotates synchronously with the rotating component nor is relatively stationary with the stationary component, but rather can avoid the pipeline assemblyby rotating relative to the outdoor unit componentand the indoor unit component. Thus, the first communication openingand the second communication openingare ensured to be in the open state constantly.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, as illustrated in, the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit componentare pivotally connected to each other by a hinge assemblyto rotate relatively about a unique pivot axis L extending in a transverse direction. Thus, providing the hinge assemblycan realize the pivotal connection between the indoor unit componentand the outdoor unit bodyto enable one of the outdoor unit bodyand the indoor unit componentto rotate about the unique pivot axis L extending in the transverse direction relative to another one of the outdoor unit bodyand the indoor unit component. In this way, a configuration of the window air conditioneris changed.

Since there is only one unique pivot axis L instead of having a plurality of pivot axes L, a rotation trajectory of the rotating component relative to the stationary component is determined. An installer can smoothly and reliably pull the rotating component to rotate. Thus, the configuration of the window air conditionercan be ensured to be changed reliably and effectively. Moreover, since the rotation trajectory of the rotating component is determined and the rotating component is supported by the hinge assembly, an action of driving the rotating component to rotate can be simple, smooth, labor-saving, and reliable.

Further, with reference to, the shielding shellmay be rotatably and pivotally connected to the hinge assemblyabout the pivot axis L. Therefore, stable mounting of the shielding shellcan be realized. Moreover, the shielding shelldoes not need to move synchronously with the hinge assembly, when an interior of the shielding shellis used for pipe routing and wire routing, a problem of interference to the pipe routing and the wire routing due to the synchronous movement of the shielding shelland the hinge assemblyis avoided.

For example, in some embodiments, as illustrated in, the shielding shellmay include a top shellextending in the transverse direction and configured to shield above the hinge assembly. The shielding shellfurther includes an end shellconnected to each of two transverse ends of the top shell. The end shellis rotatably and pivotally connected to the hinge assemblyabout the pivot axis L (for example, by a rotary shaftin). Thus, the shielding shellcan more comprehensively protect the pipeline assemblyand the hinge assembly, and can be easily pivotally connected to the hinge assembly.

For example, a hinge assemblymay be arranged at a position close to each end shell. Thus, the hinge assemblycan be pivotally connected to the end shellby a shorter rotary shaft. Of course, the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and at least one hinge assemblymay be arranged between the two hinge assemblies, to improve stability and reliability of the pivotal connection between the outdoor unit componentand the indoor unit component, and thus to improve a support effect for the rotation of the outdoor unit component.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, as illustrated in, the first communication openingis formed between an inner side edgeof the top shell(i.e., a side edge of the top shellin the longitudinal direction close to the indoor side) and the indoor unit component. The second communication openingis formed between an outer side edgeof the top shell(i.e., a side edge of the top shellin the longitudinal direction close to the outdoor side) and the outdoor unit component. The indoor unit componentincludes a first flangeadapted to stop against an outer side of the inner side edge. The outdoor unit componentincludes a second flangeadapted to stop against an inner side of the outer side edge. Therefore, this arrangement can ensure better sealing and provide better protection for the pipeline assembly.

In some embodiments, as illustrated in, the hinge assemblyincludes a first articulation memberarranged at the indoor unit componentand a second articulation memberarranged at the outdoor unit component. The second articulation memberis hinged to the first articulation memberto be reciprocally rotatable between a first angular position (e.g., a position illustrated in) and a second angular position (e.g., a position illustrated in). When the second articulation memberrotates to a third angular position (e.g., a position illustrated in) between the first angular position and the second angular position from the first angular position, the second articulation membermay be in contact with the outer side edgeto push the shielding shellto rotate synchronously towards the second angular position. Thus, using a rotation time difference between the second articulation memberand the shielding shellcan avoid the problem that the shielding shellalways moves synchronously with the second articulation memberto close the first communication opening, to ensure that the first communication openingis constantly in the open state.

Further, when the second articulation memberrotates to the third angular position (e.g., a position illustrated in) from the second angular position (e.g., the position illustrated in), the second flangemay be in contact with the outer side edgeto pull the shielding shellto rotate synchronously with the second articulation membertowards the first angular position (e.g., the position illustrated in) for resetting. Thus, the shielding shellcan return to its original position, which provides an effective shielding effect with the ingenious design.

For example, as illustrated in, the first angular position of the second articulation memberis a position at an angle of°, as illustrated in, the second angular position of the second articulation memberis a position at an angle of 90°, as illustrated in, and the third angular position of the second articulation memberis a position at an angle of 45°. The top shellof the shielding shellmay be an arc-shape with a cross section of a central angle of 90°. As illustrated in, when the second articulation memberis located at the position at the angle of 0°, the inner side edgeand the outer side edgeof the top shellare symmetrical about a vertical plane. In this case, a line connecting the inner side edgeof the top shelland a center of the top shellintersects a horizontal plane at an angle of 45°, and a line connecting the outer side edgeof the top shelland the center of the top shellalso intersects the horizontal plane at an angle of 45°.

When the second articulation memberrotates to the position at the angle of 45° from the position at the angle of 0°, as illustrated in, the second articulation membermay be in contact with the outer side edgeof the top shell. In this case, the shielding shellis pushed to rotate another angle of 45° as a whole, and the second articulation memberreaches the position at the angle of 90°, as illustrated in. At this time, a line connecting the inner side edgeof the top shelland the center of the top shellintersects the horizontal plane at an angle of 0°, and a line connecting the outer side edgeof the top shelland the center of the top shellintersects the horizontal plane at an angle of 90°. As such, each of the first communication openingand the second communication openingis ensured to be in the open state.

When the second articulation memberrotates to the position at the angle of 45° from the position at the angle of 90° towards the position at the angle of 0°, as illustrated in, the second flangeof the outdoor unit componentis in contact with the outer side edgeof the top shell. As the outdoor unit componentand the second articulation memberrotate synchronously, the shielding shellis pulled by the second flangeto rotate reversely by an angle of 45° as a whole until the second articulation memberreaches the position at the angle of 0°, as illustrated in. At this time, the line connecting the inner side edgeof the top shelland the center of the top shellis returned to intersect the horizontal plane at the angle of 45°, and the line connecting the outer side edgeof the top shelland the center of the top shellis also returned to intersect the horizontal plane at the angle of 45°. Thus, the shielding effect is ensured.