Patent ID: 7305841

Claim:
A cogeneration system comprising: a heat pump type air conditioner including a compressor, a 4-way valve, an indoor heat exchanger, expansion devices, and an outdoor heat exchanger; a generator to generate electricity; a drive source, which operates to drive the generator, and generates waste heat during the operation of the drive source; a waste heat recoverer to recover the waste heat of the drive source; a waste heat supplying heat exchanger, which is heated by the waste heat recovered by the waste heat recoverer; and a bypassing unit to guide a refrigerant such that the refrigerant, which is expanded while passing though the expansion devices, during a heating operation of the heat pump type air conditioner, bypasses the outdoor heat exchanger, and enters the 4-way valve after being evaporated in the waste heat supplying heat exchanger, and such that the refrigerant, which is compressed in the compressor during a cooling operation of the heat pump type air conditioner, bypasses the waste heat supplying heat exchanger, and passes through the outdoor heat exchanger while being condensed in the outdoor heat exchanger; a radiating heat exchanger to radiate the waste heat recovered by the waste heat recoverer; a heat medium circulation conduit, which connects the waste heat recoverer and the waste heat supplying heat exchanger, and through which a heat medium is circulated; a radiating bypass conduit, which connects the radiating heat exchanger and the heat medium circulation conduit, and guides the heat medium passing through the heat medium circulation conduit to bypass the waste heat supplying heat exchanger; and a waste heat distributor to distribute the waste heat recovered by the waste heat recoverer to the waste heat supplying heat exchanger and the radiating heat exchanger, said waste heat distributor comprising a 3-way valve arranged at an inlet of the radiating bypass conduit.