Patent ID: 6427771
Filing Date: 2002-08-06
Classification: B60H

Abstract:
An air conditioner for a vehicle having a passenger compartment in which an instrumental panel is disposed, said air conditioner comprising:a case for forming an air passage through which air flows, said case having a face opening, a defroster opening and a foot opening through which the air is blown into the passenger compartment, the case being disposed at an approximate center of the instrument panel in a vehicle right-left direction; a cooling heat exchanger disposed in a substantially horizontal direction in said case for cooling the air; a heating heat exchanger disposed in the substantially horizontal direction in said case at an upper side of said cooling heat exchanger and at a lower side of said face opening, said defroster opening and said foot opening for heating the air; a temperature adjusting member for adjusting a temperature of the air blown into the passenger compartment by adjusting an amount of the air heated by said heating heat exchanger; an air mode switching door for opening and closing said face opening, said defroster opening and said foot opening; and a foot duct disposed at a vehicle front side of said case to communicate with said foot opening and extending downwardly from an upper portion of said case to a lower portion of said case, said foot duct having a foot outlet at a lower portion thereof through which the air is blown toward a foot portion of a passenger seated on a front seat in the passenger compartment, wherein said foot duct and said foot opening are provided in such a manner that the air flowing from an upper side of said heating heat exchanger in said case is introduced into said foot duct through said foot opening in a foot mode, said foot mode being defined when said foot opening is opened by said air mode switching door; and the foot outlet is opened from side of the foot duct in the vehicle right-left direction toward a vehicle rear side.