Patent ID: 8579597

Claim:
A variable capacity type rotary compressor, comprising: a casing having a hermetic inner space; an accumulator coupled to one side of the casing via a suction pipe; at least one compressor installed in the inner space of the casing, connected to the accumulator via the suction pipe, and configured to compress a refrigerant sucked via the accumulator; a drive motor installed in the inner space of the casing and configured to drive the at least one compressor; and a mode switching valve installed outside the casing and configured to vary an operation mode of the at least one compressor, wherein the at least one compressor comprises: a plurality of cylinders installed in the inner space of the casing and having a plurality of compression spaces, respectively; a plurality of rolling pistons that orbits within the respective plurality of compression spaces of the plurality of cylinders to compress the refrigerant; and a plurality of vanes configured to partition the plurality of compression spaces of each of the plurality of cylinders into a suction space and a discharge space together with the plurality of rolling pistons, respectively, wherein the plurality of cylinders includes a plurality of suction holes, which communicates with each other via a communication passage, wherein the suction pipe is connected to the communication passage such that the refrigerant is distributed into the plurality of cylinders, wherein the mode switching valve is fixed to the accumulator to be disposed between lower and upper ends of the accumulator, wherein the mode switching valve comprises at least two inlets and at least one outlet, wherein the at least two inlets and the at least one outlet are fixed to ends of different connection pipes, respectively, and wherein an end of at least one of the connection pipes is fixed to the casing and an end of another of the connection pipes is fixed to an outer circumferential surface of the suction pipe.