Patent Publication Number: US-6662587-B2

Title: AC and HP service valves for manufactured housing

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a service unit for use in an air conditioning system and, in particular, to a service unit that allows a pre-charged section of a split system to be quickly connected into the system after shipment into the field. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention has specific application in the manufactured home industry in which split air conditioning systems are supplied by the seller as part of the home. A split air conditioning system includes an outdoor section and an indoor section each of which contains a heat exchanger coil. The sections are connected by a pair of refrigerant lines one of which carries liquid refrigerant between the sections and the other of which carries refrigerant vapor. In the case of a heat pump, the role of the refrigerant lines can be reversed in response to the mode of operation that is selected by the user. Heretofore, split systems were shipped into the field in an uncharged condition and as a consequence a good deal of time had to be spent by the installer making the necessary refrigerant line connections as well as charging the system with refrigerant and testing the system for leaks. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to improve split air conditioning systems. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a split air conditioning system wherein the outdoor section of the system is pre-charged in the factory prior to shipment into the field. 
     It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a service unit for use in a split air conditioning system that will permit the rapid connection of two pre-charged sections of the system in the field. 
     Another object of the present invention is to reduce the amount of time needed to install a split air conditioning system in the field. 
     These and other objects of the present invention are attained in a split air conditioning unit containing an outdoor section and an indoor section that are connected by a pair of refrigerant lines. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, each refrigerant line is connected to a service unit located at the outdoor section. Each unit includes a body member fabricated of a square piece of bar stock. A main channel is bored through opposing sides of the body member and a tube connects one end of the channel to an appropriate line within the outdoor section. A connector is mounted in the other end of the connector for attaching the unit to one of the refrigeration lines. The connector contains a seal that is opened when the connection to the refrigeration line is completed. A process valve for permitting refrigerant to be charged into the outdoor section is also contained within an auxiliary channel that passes through a third wall of the body member and which enters the main channel. The process valve is used to charge the outdoor section of the system in the factory prior to shipment into the field. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     For a better understanding of these and other objects of the present invention reference will be made to the following detailed description of the invention which is to be read in association with the following drawings, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a split air conditioning system containing an indoor section and an outdoor section embodying the teachings of the present invention; and 
     FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a service unit employed in the air conditioning system illustrated in FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Turning now to FIG. 1, there is illustrated an air conditioning system, generally referenced  10 , that embodies the teachings of the present invention. The term air conditioning system as herein used relates to a system utilizing a thermodynamic refrigerant cycle for producing either heating or cooling. The present system is a split air conditioning system that employs an indoor section  12  and an outdoor section  13 . Each section contains a heat exchanger coil that acts either as a condenser or an evaporator depending on whether the system is operating in a cooling mode or in a heating mode. The coil of the indoor section is identified at  15  while that of the outdoor section is identified at  17 . 
     The two sections of the system are connected in final assembly by means of a line set made up of two refrigerant lines  18  and  19 . One of the lines serves as a liquid line for bringing liquid refrigerant from the indoor coil when the indoor coil is acting as a condenser to the outdoor section the coil of which is acting as a condenser to the coil that is acting as an evaporator. The other refrigerant line serves as a vapor line for bringing refrigerant in a vapor state from the coil acting as an evaporator back to the condenser. In this particular embodiment of the invention, a compressor  20  is mounted in the outdoor section for increasing the pressure of refrigerant as it moves between the evaporator and the condenser. Although not shown, a throttling device is also included in the system to expand the refrigerant moving between the condenser and the evaporator thus separating the high pressure side of the system from the low pressure side. In a heat pump embodiment, a four-way valve will also be included for reversing the flow of refrigerant through the system. It should be evident to one skilled in the art that the compressor and throttling device and four-way valve can be located in either of the sections without departing from the teachings of the present invention. 
     A pair of service units, generally referenced  30 , are mounted upon the outdoor section of the system. The construction of the service units is shown in greater detail in FIG.  2 . Each unit contains a body member  31  which is fabricated from a square or rectangular piece of common bar stock that is fastened to the outdoor section of the system by any suitable type of fastening means such as threaded fasteners or the like. A main channel  33  is passed through opposing side walls of the body member and a piece of preferably copper tubing  34  is secured as by brazing in one end of the channel. The distal end of the tubing is equipped with a threaded fastener  35 . The tubing passes into the indoor section of the system and is attached to a suitable refrigeration line (not shown) located within the section. 
     A refrigerant line connector  37  is similarly secured in the opposite end of the main channel  33 . The connector includes a male fitting  39  that is mounted on a short length of tubing  40  that is passed into the channel and secured in place as by brazing. The male fitting is arranged to threadably mate with a female fitting  42  whose corresponding male fitting (not numbered) is connected to a female fitting of one of the refrigerant lines  18 ,  19 . A floating piston  44  is contained within the connector as shown. A penetratable disc seal  45  is mounted within the female fitting  42 . The disc seal is fabricated from a thin piece of metal or any other suitable material that can be penetrated or ruptured as the two fittings are brought together in assembly. When the seal is penetrated or broken, a flow path for refrigerant is established through the service unit. A connecter of the type herein described is commercially available through Eaton Aeroquip Air Conditioning &amp; Refrigeration Division located in New Haven, Ind. and is marketed under the trade name Aeroquip Quick Connect. 
     A process valve  50  is also mounted upon the body member of the service valve and is placed in fluid flow communication with the main channel by an auxiliary channel  51  passed into a third wall of the body section. The auxiliary channel, like the main channel can be established using a simple drilling or boring operation. The process valve is inserted into the entrance to the auxiliary channel. The process valve is also available through the Eaton Aeroquip Division noted above. The process valve is arranged to coact with an adaptor  53  so that refrigerant can be delivered under pressure into the outdoor unit or removed from the unit if the need arises. The process valve is primarily used to charge the outdoor section with refrigerant in the factory prior to shipment into the field. The valve is opened when the adaptor is mated to the valve and closes automatically when the adaptor is removed. As can be seen, refrigerant is prevented from escaping from the outdoor section by the sealed connector so that this section of the system can be pre-charged prior to shipment into the field. 
     The two refrigerant lines  18  and  19 , in this embodiment of the invention, are connected directly into the indoor coil of the system as illustrated in FIG.  1 . The indoor coil of the system may also be pre-charged with refrigerant at a relatively slower pressure than the outdoor section. Connectors  30 , such as those described above, are again utilized to connect the indoor coil to the refrigerant line in the field. 
     While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to the preferred mode as illustrated in the drawing, it will be understood by one skilled in the art that various changes in detail may be effected therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims.