Patent ID: 7407002
Filing Date: 2008-08-05
Classification: F25B

Abstract:
1. An air conditioner comprising an outdoor unit and an indoor unit provided with an indoor heat exchanger and an indoor expansion device, wherein the outdoor unit comprises: a compressor which compresses a refrigerant; an outdoor heat exchanger which exchanges heat between a refrigerant and outdoors; a four-way valve located proximate to the compressor to circulate a refrigerant discharged from the compressor according to a heating cycle or a cooling cycle; a refrigerant detouring path which detours a refrigerant discharged from the outdoor heat exchanger to the compressor at the time of a defrosting operation; an outdoor expansion device installed in the middle of the detouring path, which reduces a pressure of a refrigerant which flows in the refrigerant detouring path; and a heat exchanging device installed in the middle of the detouring path which directly exchanges heat between a refrigerant introduced from the outdoor expansion device and a refrigerant discharged from the compressor.