Patent ID: 7886814
Filing Date: 2011-02-15
Classification: B60H

Abstract:
1. A vehicle air conditioner for a vehicle having an instrument panel and dash panel, comprising: an air conditioning unit disposed substantially in an inside middle portion of the instrument panel in a widthwise direction of the vehicle; an air blowing unit having a casing, the air blowing unit being disposed to a front-passenger's side of the air conditioning unit; an intermediate duct for conducting an air from the air blowing unit to the air conditioning unit; a cooling heat exchanger including cooler pipes and a heating heat exchanger including heater pipes disposed in the air conditioning unit, the cooler pipes and the heater pipes being arranged to extend from the same side of the air conditioning unit in the widthwise direction of the vehicle and project out from a side wall part of the air conditioning unit on the air blowing unit side and bend to extend toward the front of the vehicle, with distal ends of the cooler pipes and the heater pipes projecting out from through holes, formed in the dash panel provided at a vehicle front side of the air conditioning unit, to an engine room side, such that the air conditioner allowing the air introduced from the intermediate duct into the air conditioning unit to pass through the cooling and heating heat exchangers disposed in the air conditioning unit to produce a conditioned air, a temperature control damper having two damper members provided in a casing of the air conditioning unit, the temperature control damper controlling the temperature of the conditioned air by changing a ratio of the flow rate of the air passing through the heating heat exchanger in relation to the volume of the air introduced into the air conditioning unit through the intermediate duct; a blow-out direction switching damper provided in a casing of the air conditioning unit, the blow-out direction switching damper changing the blow-out direction of the conditioned air; and an expansion valve provided in an expansion valve box with the cooler pipes being connected to the cooling heat exchanger through the expansion valve; wherein the casing of the air conditioning unit has an extended wall which protrudes outside the air conditioning unit and surrounds the expansion valve box; the air conditioning unit has a cover for covering the extended wall from outside the air conditioning unit such that the expansion valve box is covered by the extended wall and the cover; and wherein the temperature control damper and the blow-out direction switching damper are each driven by a drive mechanism and an actuator, the drive mechanism and the actuator of the temperature control damper and of the blow-out direction switching damper respectively being provided at a side wall part of the air conditioning unit on the air blowing unit side.