Patent ID: 11913664
Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION
Field: Thermal processes and apparatus (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC F | IPC B  F

Claim 9:
10. A method of controlling an air-conditioning apparatus, the air-conditioning apparatus including a plurality of heat source apparatuses including respective compressors and respective accumulators each configured to accumulate refrigerant to be compressed by an associate one of the compressors, the method comprising:
calculating an amount of the refrigerant accumulated in the accumulator in one of the heat source apparatus that is to be controlled;
calculating, in a case where the number of the plurality of heat source apparatuses is two, a differential amount between the calculated amount of the refrigerant and an amount of the refrigerant in an other of the accumulators, and in a case where the number of the plurality of heat source apparatuses is three or more, a differential amount between the calculated amount of the refrigerant and an average amount of amounts of the refrigerant accumulated in the accumulators in the plurality of heat source apparatuses; and
controlling the heat source apparatus including the accumulator in the heat source apparatus to be controlled, based on the calculated differential amount, to thereby equalize the amounts of the refrigerant accumulated in the accumulators in the plurality of heat source apparatuses,
the calculating the amount of the refrigerant includes
measuring a level of a liquid surface of the refrigerant accumulated in the accumulator in the heat source apparatus to be controlled, and
calculating the amount of the refrigerant accumulated in the accumulator in the heat source apparatus to be controlled, based on the measured level of the liquid surface, a volume of the accumulator in the heat source apparatus to be controlled, and a density of the refrigerant.