Patent ID: 6371202
Filing Date: 2002-04-16
Classification: B60H

Abstract:
An air conditioner for a vehicle having an engine and a passenger compartment, said air conditioner comprising:an air conditioning case for defining an air passage through which air is blown into the passenger compartment, said air conditioning case having a first opening through which air is blown toward a windshield and a second opening through which air is blown toward a lower side of the passenger compartment; a partition member for partitioning said air passage into a first air passage through which outside air outside the passenger compartment flows into said first opening and a second air passage through which inside air inside the passenger compartment flows into said second opening, during a double layer flow mode; a compressor for compressing and discharging refrigerant; a condenser for condensing refrigerant discharged from said compressor during a cooling mode; a first press-reducing unit for decompressing refrigerant from said condenser; a heat exchanger disposed in said air conditioning case, for cooling air passing therethrough and for evaporating refrigerant from said first press-reducing unit during said cooling mode; a refrigerant duct for defining a hot-gas bypass passage through which refrigerant discharged from said compressor is directly introduced into said heat exchanger while bypassing said condenser and said first press-reducing unit during a heating mode; a second press-reducing unit, disposed in said hot-gas bypass passage, for decompressing refrigerant discharged from said compressor; a valve unit for switching a communication between a refrigerant discharged side of said compressor and a refrigerant inlet side of said compressor and a refrigerant inlet side of said condenser, and a communication between the refrigerant discharge side of said compressor and a refrigerant inlet side of said hot-gas bypass passage; and a control unit for setting said double layer flow mode during said heat mode; wherein: in said cooling mode, said control unit sets said double layer flow mode only when temperature of outside air is lower than a predetermined temperature.