Patent Application
20240219071
This application claims the priority of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2022-0187657, filed on Dec. 28, 2022, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
The present invention relates to an air heating apparatus for heating.
In North American homes, heating may be achieved by supplying heated air through a duct connected to each room. To heat air, a device called a gas furnace is usually used. Heat generated by burning a fuel in a gas furnace may be transferred to air, and heating is performed by supplying the heated air to each room. The gas furnace may use an air heating manner in which a high-temperature combustion gas by combustion reaction of a burner generally flows into a tube including a heat exchanger, and air flows around the tube to exchange heat between the air and the combustion gas in the heat exchanger. An air heating apparatus using water by improving the gas furnace is proposed. The heating may be performed by heating the water using the heat generated through the combustion reaction and by heating the air using the heated water.
However, in such an air heating apparatus, a portion at which the air flows and a portion at which the combustion occurs have to be thoroughly separated from each other. If the fuel gas applied to the portion at which the combustion occurs or the combustion gas generated by the combustion leaks into the portion at which the air flows, the fuel gas or the combustion gas may be transferred to a region that requires heating to cause a major safety problem.
An aspect of the present invention provides an air heating apparatus in which a risk of gas leaking from a portion at which combustion occurs to a portion at which air flows is reduced.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an air heating apparatus including: a burner configured to cause combustion reaction; a heat exchange part configured to receive heat from a combustion gas generated by the combustion reaction so as to heat water; a heating heat exchanger configured to receive the water heated by the heat exchange part so as to be heat-exchanged with air to be discharged for heating; a fan configured to blow the air to the heating heat exchanger; a condensed water receiver configured to collect and discharge condensed water generated in the heat exchange part; a case in which the burner, the heat exchange part, the heating heat exchanger, the fan, and the condensed water receiver are embedded; and a condensed water trap disposed outside the case and configured to receive the condensed water transferred from the condensed water receiver so as to provide a trap configured to block leakage of the combustion gas.
The above and other aspects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In adding of reference numerals to components of each drawing, it should be noted that the same components have the same numerals as much as possible even if the components are displayed on different drawings. In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted to avoid making the subject matter of the present invention unclear.
Referring to the drawings, the air heating apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a burner 21, a heat exchanger 22, a heating heat exchanger 72, a fan 71, a condensed water receiver 30, and a case 10.
A heating system including the air heating apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may be installed in a house. The heating system may include the air heating apparatus 1 for heating air. The air heating apparatus 1 may be connected to a duct connected to each room of the house to perform the heating by transferring the heated air to each room. Air may be introduced into the air heating apparatus 1 from the outside of the house or may be returned to the air heating apparatus 1 via the rooms of the house. The air may be introduced into the air heating apparatus 1 from the outside of the house.
In this specification, front and rear, left and right, and up and down directions may be referred to for convenience of explanation and may be directions perpendicular to each other. However, these directions may be determined relative to a direction in which the air heating apparatus 1 is disposed, and the up and down direction may not necessarily mean a vertical direction.
The air heating apparatus 1 of the present invention includes a case 10. The case 10 may be a component in which other components of the air heating apparatus 1 are built, or the components of the air heating apparatus 1 are coupled and fixed. The case 10 may have a rectangular parallelepiped shape and include an upper plate 11 and a lower plate 12, which are perpendicular to the up and down direction and spaced apart from each other in the vertical direction, a left plate 16 and a right plate 15, which are perpendicular to the left and right direction and spaced apart from each other in the left and right direction, and a front plate 13 and a right plate 14, which perpendicular to the front and rear direction and spaced apart from each other in the front and rear direction. The upper plate 11, the lower plate 12, the left plate 16, the right plate 15, the front plate 13, and the rear plate 14 may be coupled to each other to provide the case 10 having the rectangular parallelepiped shape.
The case 10 may include a horizontal division plate 18. The horizontal division plate 18 may be perpendicular to the vertical direction and be disposed between the upper plate 11 and the lower plate 12 to vertically divide an inner space of the case 10. The case 10 may include a vertical division plate 17. The vertical division plate 17 may be perpendicular to the front and rear direction and be disposed between the front plate 13 and the rear plate 14 to divide the inner space of the case 10 in the front and rear direction.
The inner space of the case 10 may include a heat cell space and a water space. The heat cell space may be a space defined above the horizontal division plate 18 and in front of the vertical division plate 17 and be provided with components including a water heater 20. The water space may be a space defined below the horizontal division plate 18 and in front of the vertical division plate 17 and be provided with components including an expansion tank 61. The heat cell space and the water space may be divided by the horizontal division plate 18.
The inner space of the case 10 may include a fan space and a heating space. The fan space and the heating space may communicate with each other. The fan space and the heating space may be spaces defined behind the vertical division plate 17, and also, the fan space may be defined at a lower side, and the heating space may be defined at an upper side. Thus, the heating space may be separated from the heat cell space by the vertical division plate 17. The fan space may be separated from the water space by the vertical division plate 17. The fan 71 may be built in the fan space. The heating heat exchanger 72 may be built into the heating space. Thus, air blown from the fan 71 may pass through the heating heat exchanger 72. To enable such the space division, the horizontal division plate 18 may be coupled to a rear surface of the front plate 13, but does not protrude further backward than the vertical division plate 17, or even if the horizontal division plate 18 protrudes, a protruding portion may have an opening in the vertical direction so that the air flows from the fan space to the heating space.
The vertical division plate 17 may include a vertical upper division plate 171 disposed above the horizontal division plate 18 and a vertical lower division plate 172 disposed below the horizontal division plate 18. Thus, a rear surface of the heat cell space may be defined by the vertical upper division plate 171, and a rear surface of the water space may be defined by the vertical lower division plate 172.
A portion of the upper plate 11, which corresponds to the heating heat exchanger 72, may be opened along the vertical direction to provide a heating outlet 110 which passes through the heating heat exchanger 72 and through which the heated air is discharged to the outside. A portion of the left plate 16 or the right plate 15 may be opened to provide a heating inlet through which air flows into the fan 71.
The water heater 20 may be a component provided to heat introduced water and discharge the heated water. To heat water, the water heater 20 may cause a combustion reaction and transfer the heat generated from the combustion reaction to the water. The water heater 20 may be disposed in the heat cell space.
The water heater 20 may include a burner 21, a heat exchanger 22, and a condensed water receiver 30. The burner 21 may cause the combustion reaction. Therefore, the burner 21 may receive a fuel and air and may cause the combustion reaction to generate flame in a mixture of the fuel and air using a spark plug. For this operation, the burner 21 may include an opening, through which the pre-mixer of air and fuel is discharged, and a spark plug that generates spark for ignition. However, the burner 21 may include an air nozzle for injecting air and a fuel nozzle for injecting a fuel together with the spark plug.
The burner 21 may include a mixing chamber to allow the fuel and air to be mixed in the mixing chamber. Heat and a combustion gas may be generated through the combustion reaction and then may be transferred to water. The fuel may be a natural gas used for power generation such as methane, ethane, etc., or may be oil, but the type is not limited thereto. The flame generated by the combustion reaction generated by the burner 21 may be disposed in an inner space of a combustion chamber 23 disposed below the burner 21. The combustion chamber 23 may be a wet-type combustion chamber. For example, a water tube through which water passes may be disposed on a side surface of the combustion chamber 23 to surround the side surface of the combustion chamber 23. In a process of dissipating heat inside the combustion chamber 23 to the outside of the combustion chamber 23, some of the heat may be transferred to the water in the water tube.
The heat exchange part 22 may be disposed to transfer the heat generated from the burner 21 to water. The heat exchange part 22 may be disposed below the burner 21.
The heat exchange part 22 may include a sensible heat exchanger and a latent heat exchanger. Each of the sensible heat exchanger and the latent heat exchanger may be a fin-tube type heat exchanger including a fin and a tube through which water flows or may be a plate-type heat exchanger provided by stacking a plurality of plates, but the types are not limited thereto. The water introduced into the heat exchanger 22 via the expansion tank 61 through a heat exchange inflow tube 63 may be heated by sequentially passing through a latent heat exchanger and a sensible heat exchanger. The heat exchange inflow tube 63 may connect the expansion tank 61 to the heat exchanger 22 by passing through the horizontal division plate 18, and a packing that maintains sealing of the heat cell space may be disposed between the heat exchange inflow tube 63 and the horizontal division plate 18. Since water will be pumped from the expansion tank 61 through the heat exchange inflow tube 63, the heat exchange inflow tube 63 may be connected to the heat exchange part 22 through a heat exchange adapter 29 that easily withstands a pressure.
When the sensible heat exchanger and the latent heat exchanger are provided as the fin-tube type heat exchanger, the fin may be provided in a plate shape and may be penetrated by the tube. A plurality of fins may be disposed to be spaced apart along a direction in which the tube extends. The combustion gas may flow through a space between the fin and the fin and between the tube and the tube, and the water may flow through the inside of the tube to exchange heat between the water and the combustion gas.
The tube may have a long hole shape of which an inner space is elongated along the vertical direction in a cross-section that is cut along a plane perpendicular to the direction in which the tube extends. The inner space of the tube may be defined so that a height along the vertical direction in the above-described cross-section divided by a width along the front and rear direction perpendicular to the vertical direction is greater than about 2.
The sensible heat exchanger may be provided to receive heat generated by the combustion reaction so as to heat water flowing therethrough. Thus, the sensible heat exchanger may be disposed adjacent to the burner 21. The sensible heat exchanger may not be blocked against flame, and the combustion gas may pass through the sensible heat exchanger.
The latent heat exchanger may be provided to heat the water flowing through the inside using latent heat of the combustion gas generated by the combustion reaction. Since the latent heat exchanger uses the latent heat of the combustion gas, the heat generated when moisture contained in the combustion gas is condensed may be transferred to the water flowing inside the latent heat exchanger. Thus, the latent heat exchanger may be disposed after the sensible heat exchanger based on the flow direction of the combustion gas so that the combustion gas of which a temperature is lowered by transferring the heat to the water from the sensible heat exchanger reaches to be condensed. The tubes provided in the latent heat exchanger may be disposed at different positions along the flow direction of the combustion gas to provide a plurality of rows.
The sensible heat exchanger and the latent heat exchanger may be disposed in the main passage so that the water is introduced into the sensible heat exchanger through the latent heat exchanger. Thus, the water may be heated primarily in the latent heat exchanger and then secondarily heated in the sensible heat exchanger so as to be transferred to the heating heat exchanger 72, which will be described later.
The water heater 20 may further include a sensible heat insulating tube outside the sensible heat exchanger. The sensible heat insulating tube may be a tube in which heating water flows along the inside and is in direct or indirect contact with the sensible heat exchanger so as to insulate the sensible heat exchanger.
In the water heater 20, the burner 21, the sensible heat exchanger, and the latent heat exchanger may be sequentially disposed from the top to the bottom. Thus, here, the combustion gas may flow downward. However, the direction is not limited thereto.
The heat exchange part 22 may include a heat exchange housing and may be configured in such a manner in which the sensible heat exchanger and the latent heat exchanger are disposed therein. The combustion gas may pass through a space defined inside the heat exchange housing so to be heat-exchanged with water passing through the tube of each heat exchanger.
A cross-sectional area of the inner space of the heat exchange housing, which is cut along the plane perpendicular to the flow direction of the combustion gas is referred to a reference cross-sectional area. The heat exchange housing may include a tapered region, in which the reference cross-sectional area decreases along the flow direction of the combustion gas, and a section in which the reference cross-sectional area does not decrease. A reference cross-sectional area at a downstream end of the heat exchange housing may be less than a reference cross-sectional area at an upstream end of the heat exchange housing based on the flow direction of the combustion gas. A reference cross-sectional area at an upstream end of the latent heat exchanger may be less than a reference cross-sectional area at a downstream end of the sensible heat exchanger based on the flow direction of the combustion gas. Thus, when the combustion gas flows from a sensible heat exchanger-side to a latent heat exchanger-side, a degree to which a flow rate is reduced may be reduced when the reference cross-sectional area is maintained, and thus, condensed water disposed between the fins or between the tubes may be pushed out. Thus, a structure of the heat exchange housing may prevent the condensed water from causing stagnation of the combustion gas in the latent heat exchanger to deteriorate thermal efficiency. The fin of each heat exchanger may be provided to match a shape of the inner space of the heat exchange housing described above.
The order in which water flows from the heat exchanger 22 will be explained as follows. The water may be introduced first into the latent heat exchanger of the heat exchange part 22, and the water may condense water vapor of the combustion gas flowing around in the latent heat exchanger and be heated by receiving the latent heat generated during the condensation process. The water heated in the latent heat exchanger may be transferred to the sensible heat exchanger and heated in such a manner of receiving the heat generated by the combustion reaction. The water heated in the heat exchanger 22 may be transferred to the heating heat exchanger 72. The water transferred to the heating heat exchanger 72 may be cooled by transferring heat to the air passing through the heating heat exchanger 72.
The heat exchange housing may include left and right surfaces and a flow cap plate covering the left and right surfaces. The flow cap plate may be a plate that includes a flow cap that covers the left and right surfaces of the heat exchange housing through which the tube passes to define an inner space with the left and right surfaces. A plurality of passage caps and tubes may communicate with each other to provide a passage through which water flows within the heat exchange part 22. The passage defined in the heat exchange part 22 by the plurality of passage caps and tubes may include a parallel section and a series section.
An air supply port 191 for supplying external air to the water heater 20 may be defined to pass through the upper plate 11 of the case 10. The air introduced through the air supply port 191 may be provided to the burner 21 of the water heater 20. The combustion gas generated by the combustion reaction of the water heater 20 may be transmitted to the gas outlet 192 provided by passing through the upper plate 11 of the case 10 through an exhaust duct 28 and then be discharged to the outside. Since the combustion gas is disposed only within the water heater 20 and then is discharged through the gas outlet 192, the combustion gas may not be fundamentally introduced into other spaces except for the heat cell space, in which the water heater 20 is disposed, in the inner space of the case 10.
The air supply port 191 and the gas outlet 192 may be provided on an area of the upper plate 11 of the case 10, which protrudes upward. Here, the upwardly protruding area of the upper plate 11 may serve to provide a space to accommodate an increasing height even when a height of the replaced water heater 20 increases when the water heater 20 is replaced.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include an air inlet. The air inlet may include a blower 24 and an intake pipe 26. The intake pipe 26 may connect the air supply port 191 to the blower 24 to guide the supplied air to the blower 24. The blower 24 may be connected to the mixing chamber, include an impeller, etc., therein, and forcibly transfer the received air into the mixing chamber as it is driven.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include a fuel inlet 25. The fuel inlet 25 may include a fuel inflow tube 251. The fuel inflow tube 251 for providing a fuel to the air heating apparatus 1 may be disposed to pass through the case 10. The fuel inflow tube 251 may pass through the right plate 15 as shown in the drawing. The fuel inflow tube 251 may be a tube that connects the water heater 20 to the fuel tank outside the case 10 to introduce the fuel outside the case 10 into the water heater 20.
The fuel inlet 25 may include a fuel transfer tube 253 that transfers the fuel passing through the fuel inflow tube 251 to the blower 24 and a fuel valve that determines whether the fuel will be transferred through the fuel transfer tube 253. A venturi may be disposed at a portion at which the intake pipe 26 and the blower 24 are connected, and thus, the fuel transferred to the venturi through the fuel transfer tube 253 may be suctioned into the blower 24 together with air and then be transferred together with the air into the mixing chamber of the burner 12.
The heating heat exchanger 72 may be a component provided for heat exchange between the water and the air. The heating heat exchanger 72 may receive the water and then be heat-exchanged with the air to be discharged for the heating.
The heating heat exchanger 72 may be disposed adjacent to the upper plate 11 of the case 10. The heating heat exchanger 72 may include a heat exchange tube through which water heated by the water heater 20 flows. The heat exchange tube may be provided in a pipe shape so that water flows through the inside, and air supplied by the fan 71 flows through the outside, and may be provided to provide a winding passage in the front-back and left-right directions. The heat exchange tube may be made of a material containing at least one of aluminum and copper.
Since the heat exchange tube is made of the same material as described above and is provided so that water flows through the inside, the following effects may be expected. The heat exchange tube according to an embodiment of the present invention is different from the tube of the conventional gas furnace, which experiences excessive thermal expansion and contraction due to the combustion gas and air flowing to the inside and thee outside, which may cause cracks and leakage of the combustion gas, and thus, the risk of occurrence of the cracks may be reduced, and even if the cracks occur, only the water may leak rather than the combustion gas leaking into the air, and thus, safety may be greatly enhanced. In addition, in the heating heat exchanger 72 of the present invention, since the heat exchange between the water and the air occurs through the heat exchange tube, humidity may be maintained, and the air may be heated, and thus, a separate humidity control device may not be required.
The heat exchange tube may be provided as a plurality of layers disposed at different positions along the vertical direction. In the present invention, the heat exchange tube is shown and described as forming four layers, but the number of layers is not limited thereto. In addition, the heat exchange tube may form four layers, all of which may be connected in series, or may be provided as a mixture of series and parallel connections.
The heat exchange tube may include a straight member extending in the front and rear direction and a connection member connecting ends of adjacent straight members to each other. The connection member may include a same-layer connection member and a different layer connection member. The plurality of straight members may be arranged along the left and right direction, and the plurality of same-layer connection members may be disposed at front and rear ends of each of the straight members to connect the ends of the adjacent straight members to each other to provide a passage. The plurality of different layer connection members may provide a passage by connecting the ends of the straight members disposed in the adjacent layers to each other. Each connection member may be provided in a ‘U’ shape.
The heating heat exchanger 72 may further include a distribution tube. The distribution tube may be provided to receive water from the water heater 20 to distribute the water to each layer provided as the heat exchange tubes. The distribution tube may include a distribution transfer tube and a distribution head. The distribution transfer tube may be connected to a main passage to receive heated water through the heat exchanger 22, and the water may flow through the distribution head connected to the distribution transfer tube. The distribution head may extend in the left and right direction and be connected to the plurality of straight members. Thus, a parallel passage provided as a plurality of partial passages having a common inlet and outlet may be provided by the distribution head. Here, the inlet of the parallel passage may be the distribution head. The entire passage provided by the heat exchange tube may include a section provided as the above-described parallel passage.
Here, the straight members to which the distribution head is connected may be a straight member disposed at the uppermost layer among the layers provided by the heat exchange tube. The water may be transferred to the uppermost layer of the heat exchange tube, and the water may flow along each layer provided by the heat exchange tube to the lowest layer. In this process, the water may transfer heat to the air passing around the heat exchange tube. That is, a direction in which the air supplied by the fan 71 within the heating heat exchanger 72 flows may be an upward direction, and the overall direction in which the water moves may be a downward direction and may have a counter-flow structure.
The heating heat exchanger 72 may further include a collection tube that returns water, which is completely heat-transferred to the air, to the water heater 20. The collection tube may include a collection transfer tube and a collection head. The heat exchange tube may be connected to the collection head, and cooled water may be transferred to the collection head. The collection head may be connected to the collection transfer tube to allow the cooled water to be transferred to the collection passage connected to the collection transfer tube. The collection head may extend in the left and right direction and be connected to the plurality of straight members. Thus, the collection head may be an outlet of the parallel passage, and the parallel passage may be finished at the collection head, and thus, water may be collected in the collection head. Here, straight portions to which the collection head is connected may be straight portions disposed at the lowest layer among the layers provided by the heat exchange tube.
The heating heat exchanger 72 may cross the heat exchange tube and may have a plurality of heat transfer fins penetrated by the heat exchange tube. The heat transfer fins may be provided in a plate shape orthogonal to the front and rear direction, and may be arranged along the front and rear direction to better transfer the heat of the water flowing inside the heat exchange tube to the surrounding air. The air may pass between the heat exchange tube and the heat transfer fins along the upper side. The heating fin and the heat exchange tube may be fixed by the heating heat exchange housing. The heating fin may be disposed within the heating heat exchange housing. The heating heat exchange housing may be fixed to the case 10.
The fan 71 may be provided to transfer air to the heating heat exchanger 72. The fan 71 may be disposed below the heating heat exchanger 72 to transfer the air upward and pass through the heating heat exchanger 72, and the outlet through which the air is discharged may be disposed to face upward. The fan 71 may include components such as a motor and a blade and may be electrically connected to a controller. Thus, as the fan 71 is electrically controlled to operate, the motor may allow the blade to rotate so that air is blown. The fan 71 may include an impeller and the like to forcibly transfer air.
The air circulation process from the fan 71 will be explained as follows. The air introduced into the fan 71 may be blown upward. The supplied air may pass through the heating heat exchanger 72. As the air passes through the heating heat exchanger 72, the air may be heated by receiving heat from the water passing through the heating heat exchanger 72. The heated air may be discharged to the outside of the case 10 and may be transferred to each room of the house through an air conditioning duct. The air transferred to each room or the cold air introduced into the house from the outside may be introduced into the case 10 to enter the inlet of the fan 71.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include a heating water transfer tube 27 that transfers water heated in the water heater 20 to the heating heat exchanger 72. The heating water transfer tube 27 may connect the air heating apparatus 1 to the heating heat exchanger 72. The air heating apparatus 1 may include a heating water discharge tube 62 that transfers cooled water to the expansion tank 61 through the heating heat exchanger 72. The heating water discharge tube 62 may connect the heating heat exchanger 72 to the expansion tank 61. The heating water discharge tube may pass through the horizontal division plate 18 and be disposed in the heat cell space and the water space. The packing may be disposed between the heating water discharge tube 62 and the horizontal division plate 18 to maintain sealing of the heat cell space.
To connect the heating heat exchanger 72 to the heating water transfer tube 27 and to connect the heating heat exchanger 72 to the heating water discharge tube 62, a heating adapter may be disposed through the vertical upper division plate 171. The heating heat exchanger 72 may be connected to a rear end of the heating adapter, and the water transfer tube 27 for heating and the water discharge tube 62 for heating may be connected to a front end of the heating adapter. The packing may be disposed between the heating adapter and the vertical upper division plate 171 to maintain the sealing of the heat cell space.
The expansion tank 61 may be a component configured to store water. The expansion tank 61 may be disposed in the water space. The water may be introduced from an external water source. The expansion tank 61 may be provided to accommodate a volume change due to a change in water temperature. The expansion tank 61 may be connected to the main passage. The main passage may be a passage connecting the expansion tank 61, the water heater 20, and the heating heat exchanger 72 to each other. That is, the water may be introduced from the expansion tank 61 through the water heater 20 into the heating heat exchanger 72. The expansion tank 61 may accommodate the volume expansion of water flowing along the main passage. The expansion tank 61 may be configured as an open type.
If a temperature change occurs, or water flows in and out while the expansion tank 61 is filled with water, a change in the internal pressure of the expansion tank 61 may also occur. Thus, the water accommodated in the expansion tank 61 may be provided to other components along the main passage.
The expansion tank 61 may be connected to the water inflow tube 43. The water inflow tube 43 may connect the expansion tank 61 to a water source outside the case 10, or connect a condensed water trap 51 outside the case 10 to the expansion tank 61 so that the water outside the case 10 is introduced into the expansion tank 61. For this, the water inflow tube 43 may pass through the case 10.
The expansion tank 61 may include a tank body 611 and tank nipples 612 and 613 for connecting the water inflow tube 43 to the tank body 611. The tank nipples 612 and 613 may protrude from the tank body 611. The expansion tank 61 may include a left nipple 613 protruding to a left side from the upper side of the tank body 611 and a right nipple 612 protruding to a right side. When either the left nipple 613 or the right nipple 612 is connected to the water inflow tube 43, the other one may be closed. In an embodiment of the present invention, the right nipple 612 is described as being connected to the water inflow tube 43.
A water adapter 83 may be provided in the case 10. The water adapter 83 may be provided in the case 10 to maintain the sealing between the case 10 and the water inflow tube 43 passing through the case 10. The water adapter 83 may be provided as two pieces, each of which may be disposed at an opposite side of the expansion tank 61. The water adapter 83 may include a left water adapter 832 provided on the left plate 16 and a right water adapter 831 provided on the right plate 15. When the water inflow tube 43 passes through either the left water adapter 832 or the right water adapter 831, the other one may be closed. In an embodiment of the present invention, the water inflow tube 43 is described as passing through the right water adapter 831. A water level sensor may be disposed inside the expansion tank 61 to detect a water level inside the expansion tank 61. The water level sensor may be connected to the controller.
A fuel adapter 82 may be provided in the case 10. The fuel adapter 82 may be provided in the case 10 to maintain the sealing between the case 10 and the fuel inflow tube 251 passing through the case 10. The fuel adapter 82 may be provided as two pieces, each of which may be disposed at an opposite side of the fuel inlet 25. The fuel adapter 82 may include a left fuel adapter 822 disposed on the left plate 16 and a right fuel adapter 821 disposed on the right plate 15. When the fuel inflow tube 251 passes through either the left fuel adapter 822 or the right fuel adapter 821, the other one may be closed. In an embodiment of the present invention, the fuel inflow tube 251 is described as passing through the right fuel adapter 821.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include a condensed water tube 40. The condensed water tube 40 may be a tube that discharges the condensed water collected in the condensed water receiver 30. The condensed water tube 40 may be connected to a receiving boss 32 disposed at a lower end of the condensed water receiver 30 to receive the condensed water so that the condensed water flows. The condensed water tube 40 may include an internal condensed water tube 41 and an external condensed water tube 42. The internal condensed water tube 41 may connect the condensed water receiver 30 to the condensed water adapter 81, and the external condensed water tube 42 may connect the condensed water adapter 81 to the condensed water trap 51. The condensed water tube 40 may be made of a material containing rubber.
The condensed water trap 51 may receive the condensed water from the condensed water receiver 30 through the condensed water tube 40 to provide a trap from which the combustion gas is not escaped. The condensed water trap 51 may be disposed outside the case 10. In the condensed water trap 51 provided using the condensed water, the condensed water may be discharged, but the combustion gas may not be discharged. The condensed water trap 51 may be a ball-type trap and may have a built-in neutralizing agent to neutralize and discharge the condensed water.
The condensed water trap 51 may be disposed lower than the condensed water adapter 81. Thus, the condensed water may naturally pass through the condensed water adapter 81 and be transferred to the condensed water trap 51 due to a condensate's own weight.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include a trap part 50. The trap part 50 may include a condensed water trap 51 and a condensed water pump 52. The condensed water pump 52 may be connected to the trap part 50 to transfer the condensed water stored in the condensed water trap 51 to the expansion tank 61 through the water inflow tube 43.
The condensed water adapter 81 may be provided in the case 10. The condensed water adapter 81 may be provided in the case 10 to be coupled to the condensed water tube 40. The internal condensed water tube 41 may be coupled to an inner end of the condensed water adapter 81 disposed in the inner space, and the external condensed water tube 42 may be coupled to an outer end of the condensed water adapter 81 disposed outside.
The condensed water adapter 81 may be provided as two pieces, each of which may be disposed at an opposite side of the condensed water receiver 30. The condensed water adapter 81 may include a left condensed water adapter 812 disposed on the left plate 16 and a right condensed water adapter 811 disposed on the right plate 15. When the condensed water tube 40 is coupled to either the left condensed water adapter 812 or the right condensed water adapter 811, the other one may be closed. In an embodiment of the present invention, the condensed water inflow tube is described as being coupled to the right condensed water adapter 811.
Referring to
That is, referring to an embodiment and other embodiment of the present invention, the condensed water tube 40, the water inflow tubes 43 and 43b, and the fuel inflow tube 251 may be selectively coupled to the condensed water adapter 81, the water adapter 83, and the fuel adapter 82, which are disposed at each of the left and right sides. Each tube is shown and described as being connected to the adapters disposed on the right plate 15 in an embodiment of the present invention and connected to the adapters disposed on the left plate 16 in another embodiment of the present invention, but various combinations may be possible, such as selecting the left condensate adapter 812, the right water adapter 831, and the left fuel adapter 822. Thus, the air heating apparatus 1 and 1b may be installed at various positions by only changing the direction of the tube without the need to separately produce the air heating apparatus 1 and 1b.
An embodiment of the present invention will be described again. The condensed water receiver 30 may be provided to collect and discharge the condensed water generated in the heat exchange part 22. The water heater 20 may include the condensed water receiver 30 disposed at the downstream side of the heat exchanger 22 along the flow direction of the combustion gas. When the condensed water generated from the latent heat exchanger of the heat exchange part 22 falls vertically downward due to its own weight, the condensed water receiver 30 may collect the condensed water.
The condensed water receiver 30 may be detachably coupled to the internal condensed water tube 41. The condensed water receiver 30 may be provided so that the collected condensed water is discharged through the condensed water tube 40 extending vertically downward.
The condensed water receiver 30 may include a receiving body 31 and a receiving boss 32. The receiving body 31 may be coupled to a lower side of the heat exchanger 22 to receive the condensed water falling from the heat exchanger 22. The receiving body 31 may include a receiving part 311 disposed below the heat exchange part 22 and a discharge part 312 connected to the receiving part 311.
The discharge part 312 may be connected to a rear side of the receiving part 311. The discharge part 312 may have a structure that is open upward, and its bottom may be punched in the vertical direction to define a condensed water discharge hole 3120, which communicates with the receiving boss 32. An opened upper end of the discharge part 312 may be connected to an exhaust duct 28, which is a component for discharging the combustion gas. Thus, the combustion gas may pass through the heat exchange part 22, the receiving part 311, the discharge part 312 and then be transferred to the exhaust duct 28 and may be discharged to the gas outlet 192 by the exhaust duct 28.
The receiving part 311 may include a receiving coupling part 3111 having a rectangular frame shape to correspond to a shape of a lower side of the heat exchange part 22 and a receiving space part 3112 extending downward from an inner circumference of the receiving coupling body to define a space in which the condensed water is disposed.
A bottom surface of the receiving space part 3112 may have a shape that is inclined downward from a circumference toward the receiving boss 32. As illustrated in the drawings, the bottom surface may be divided into three zones and have different inclinations, but the shape of the bottom surface is not limited thereto.
The receiving boss 32 may extend in a downward direction from a lower end of the receiving body 31 so that the condensed water is discharged from the receiving body 31. The receiving boss 32 may extend from the lower end of the receiving body 31 in a direction that is inclined forward and downward. The lower end of the receiving body 31 may be disposed in the discharge part 312. Thus, the receiving boss 32 may extend from the discharge part 312. A position at which the receiving boss 32 is connected to the receiving body 31 may be disposed biased toward the right side with respect to the water heater 20 when the water heater 20 is biased to the left side of the air heating apparatus 1 as illustrated in the drawings. Thus, the receiving boss 32 may extend forward from a position as close to left and right centers of the air heating apparatus 1 as possible.
A lower end of the receiving boss 32 may be disposed below the receiving part 311. The lower end of the receiving boss 32 may be connected to the internal condensed water tube 41. The internal condensed water tube 41 and the receiving boss 32 may be coupled to each other by a circular clip. If there is a situation in which the condensed water has to be transferred from the condensed water receiver 30 to the water space, the adapters and packing, etc. have be disposed on the horizontal division plate 18 to maintain the sealing of the heat cell space, and the installation of the clip may be required for the firm coupling of the receiving boss and the condensed water tube. In addition, to secure the space in which these components are disposed, a volume of the condensate receiver 30 will need to be minimized. However, as in one embodiment of the present invention, as the direction of the receiving boss 32 is tilted to discharge the condensed water to the outside of the case 10, the adapters or packing, etc. other than the internal condensed water tube 41 and the receiving boss 32 may not be further provided. Thus, noise generation may be reduced by increasing in size of the condensed water receiver 30 and reducing a speed of the discharged combustion gas. In addition, the number of components passing through the horizontal division plate 18 may be reduced to significantly reduce possibility of gas leakage into the water space. In addition, since the combustion gas flows through the condensed water tube 40, a risk of leaking of the combustion gas into the water space may be reduced even if the condensed water tube is damaged as the condensed water tube 40 is connected to the outside.
The condensed water adapter 81 may be installed in the case 10 below the lower end of the receiving boss 32. Thus, the internal condensed water tube 41 connecting the receiving boss 32 to the condensed water adapter 81 may extend in the inclined direction with respect to the downward direction to connect the receiving boss 32 to the condensed water adapter 81. Since the internal condensed water tube 41 is inclined in this manner, the condensed water may be naturally discharged from the condensed water receiver 30 through the internal condensed water tube 41 to the condensed water adapter 81 by its own weight.
The internal condensed water tube 41 may include a boss connection tube part 411 and an adapter connection tube part 412. The boss connection tube part 411 may be a portion of which an upper end is coupled to a lower end of the receiving boss 32 and may extend in parallel to the direction in which the receiving boss 32 extends. That is, the boss connection tube part 411 may extend in a direction inclined forward with respect to the downward direction. The lower end of the receiving boss 32 may be inserted into the boss connecting tube part 411, and thus, the receiving boss 32 and the boss connecting tube part 411 may be coupled to each other.
An upper end of the adapter connection tube part 412 may be connected to a lower end of the boss connection tube part 411, and the lower end may be coupled to the condensed water adapter 81. In an embodiment, since the internal condensed water tube 41 is coupled to the right condensed water adapter 811, the adapter connection tube part 412 may extend along a direction inclined to the right side with respect to the downward direction. When viewed along the front and rear direction, the adapter connection tube part 412 may define an angle of about 1 degree or more and about 2 degrees or less with respect to the horizontal direction and may define an angle of about 1.5 degrees.
As described above, the directions in which the boss connection tube part 411 and the adapter connection tube part 412 extend may be different from each other. Thus, the internal condensed water tube 41 may be curved or bent at a point at which the adapter connection tube part 412 and the boss connection tube part 411 meet each other, However, the internal condensed water tube 41 may be provided as a plurality of portions extending in different directions and may be gently bent to provide a curved profile connecting the receiving boss 32 to the condensed water adapter 81.
The air heating apparatus 1 may include a support protrusion 182. The support protrusion 182 may protrude upward from a top surface 181 of the horizontal division plate 18 to supports the internal condensed water tube 41. The support protrusion 182 may support the internal condensed water tube 41 by being in contact with a bottom surface of the adapter connection tube part 412. Thus, the internal condensed water tube 41 may be inclined, but be supported by the support protrusion 182 to prevent the internal condensed water tube 41 from sagging and being damaged or so as not to provide an appropriate gradient for discharging the condensate. The support protrusion 182 may be provided by pressing the horizontal division plate 18 upward.
The support protrusion 182 may be provided in plurality. The plurality of support protrusions 182 may be arranged one by one at predetermined intervals. The plurality of support protrusions 182 may be arranged to be spaced apart from each other along the left and right direction. In an embodiment of the present invention, it is described as including total six support protrusions 182 such as a first support protrusion 1821, a second support protrusion 1822, a third support protrusion 1823, a fourth support protrusion 1824, a fifth support protrusion 1825, and a sixth support protrusion 1826, but the number is not limited thereto.
A height of the plurality of support protrusions 182 may be lower as they are closer to the condensed water adapter 81. In the plurality of support protrusions 182, a height of the support protrusion 182 closest to the receiving boss 32 may be the highest and may be higher than each of the other support protrusions 182. Thus, a height of the fourth support protrusion 1824 disposed at a front side of the receiving boss 32 may be the highest, and a height of each of the third support protrusion 1823 and the fifth support protrusion 1825 may be lower than a height of the fourth support protrusion 1824. In addition, a height of the second support protrusion 1822 may be lower than a height of the third support protrusion 1823, a height of the first support protrusion 1821 may be lower than a height of the second support protrusion 1822, and a height of the sixth support protrusion may be lower than a height of the fifth support protrusion 1825.
The plurality of support protrusions 182 may include a first support protrusion group that supports the internal condensed water tube 41 when the internal condensed water tube 41 is coupled to one of the two condensed water adapters 81 and a second support protrusion group that supports the internal condensate tube 41 when the internal condensate pipe 41 is coupled to the other one of the two condensate adapters 81. For example, when the internal condensed water tube 41 is connected to the right condensed water adapter 811 as in one embodiment of the present invention, the fourth support protrusion 1824, the third support protrusion 1823, and the second support protrusion 1822, and the first support protrusion 1821 may support the internal condensed water tube 41 to provide a right support protrusion group. The right support protrusion group may be the first support protrusion group, and the left support protrusion group may be the second support protrusion group, and vice versa. In addition, when the internal condensed water tube 41 is connected to the left condensed water adapter 812 as in another embodiment of the present invention, the fourth support protrusion 1824, the fifth support protrusion 1825, and the sixth support protrusion 1826 may support the internal condensed water tube 41 to provide a left support protrusion group.
In the above description, the components included in each embodiment may be applied to other embodiments as long as the components do not conflict with the components included in other embodiments.
According to the present invention, the risk of the gas leaking from the portion at which the combustion occurs to the portion at which the air flows may be reduced.
The above-disclosed subject matter is to be considered illustrative, and not restrictive, and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications, enhancements, and other embodiments, which fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, the embodiment of the present invention is to be considered illustrative, and not restrictive, and the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited to the foregoing embodiment. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined not by the detailed description of the invention but by the appended claims, and all differences within the scope will be construed as being included in the present invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2022-0187657 | Dec 2022 | KR | national |
