This invention relates generally to dehumidification and more particularly to an in-wall dehumidifier.
In certain situations, it is desirable to reduce the humidity of air within a structure. For example, homes and apartments may need dehumidification during certain times of the year to reduce the moisture levels within the living spaces. To accomplish this, one or more dehumidifiers may be placed within the structure to dehumidify the air. Current dehumidifiers, however, are typically bulky and require valuable floor space.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, disadvantages and problems associated with previous dehumidification systems may be reduced or eliminated.
In some embodiments, a dehumidifier includes a cabinet configured to be installed between studs in a wall and an air diffuser configured to diffuse an airflow from the dehumidifier along a surface of the wall. The air diffuser includes an inlet, an outlet above the inlet, and a divider between the inlet and outlet. The divider is configured to prevent the airflow entering the cabinet through the inlet from mixing with the airflow exiting the cabinet from the outlet. The dehumidifier further includes a compressor, an evaporator installed within the cabinet above the compressor, and a condenser installed within the cabinet above the evaporator. The condenser includes a plurality of microchannel condenser coils. The dehumidifier further includes a fan installed between the evaporator and a back surface of the cabinet. The fan is configured to generate the airflow that flows into the cabinet through the inlet of the air diffuser and out of the cabinet through the outlet of the air diffuser. The airflow flows through the evaporator and condenser in order to provide dehumidification to the airflow. The dehumidifier further includes a drain pan installed within the cabinet below the evaporator. The drain pan is configured to capture water removed from the airflow by the evaporator. The drain pan includes a notch and a tab configured to direct an overflow from the drain pan to a front face of the cabinet, thereby causing the overflow to be visible when the dehumidifier is installed in the wall. The dehumidifier further includes a sensor installed below the drain pan. The sensor is configured to sense one or more environmental conditions of a bypass portion of the airflow.
In some embodiments, a dehumidifier includes a cabinet configured to be installed between studs in a wall, an air diffuser configured to diffuse an airflow from the dehumidifier along a surface of the wall, a compressor, an evaporator installed within the cabinet above the compressor, a condenser installed within the cabinet above the evaporator, and a fan. The fan is installed between the evaporator and a back surface of the cabinet. The fan is configured to generate the airflow that flows into the cabinet through an inlet of the air diffuser and out of the cabinet through an outlet of the air diffuser. The airflow flows through the evaporator and condenser in order to provide dehumidification to the airflow.
In certain embodiments, a dehumidifier includes a cabinet configured to be installed between studs in a wall, a compressor, an evaporator installed within the cabinet above the compressor, a condenser installed within the cabinet above the evaporator, and a fan installed between the evaporator and a back surface of the cabinet. The fan is configured to generate the airflow that flows into the cabinet through the evaporator and out of the cabinet through condenser. The airflow flows through the evaporator and condenser in order to provide dehumidification to the airflow.
Certain embodiments of the present disclosure may provide one or more technical advantages. For example, certain embodiments provide an in-wall dehumidifier that may be installed within existing spaces between wall studs. This reduces or eliminates the amount of living space required for the dehumidifier. Some embodiments may be blindly installed (i.e., installed while only requiring access from one side of a wall) within typically-spaced 2×4 or 2×6 wall studs. This reduces the installation time, cost, and complexity over existing systems. Some embodiments include innovative air diffusers and arrangements of internal components to provide indirect airflow into living spaces, thereby reducing undesirable drafts caused by typical dehumidifiers.
Certain embodiments of the present disclosure may include some, all, or none of the above advantages. One or more other technical advantages may be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the figures, descriptions, and claims included herein.
To provide a more complete understanding of the present invention and the features and advantages thereof, reference is made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
In certain situations, it is desirable to reduce the humidity of air within a structure. For example, homes and apartments may need dehumidification during certain times of the year to reduce the moisture levels within the living spaces. To accomplish this, one or more dehumidifiers may be placed within the structure to dehumidify the air. Current dehumidifiers, however, are typically bulky and require valuable floor space.
The disclosed embodiments provide an in-wall dehumidifier that includes various features to address the inefficiencies and other issues with current dehumidification systems. The advantages and features of certain embodiments are discussed in more detail below in reference to
In general, in-wall dehumidifier 110 provides dehumidification to an area (e.g., the living areas of a home or apartment) by moving air through in-wall dehumidifier 110. To dehumidify air, in-wall dehumidifier 110 generates an airflow 101 that enters cabinet 140 via air diffuser 210, travels through in-wall dehumidifier 110 where it is dried, and then exits cabinet 140 via air diffuser 210. Water removed from airflow 101 via in-wall dehumidifier 110 may be captured within drain pan 340 and directed to an external drain. A particular embodiment of drain pan 340 is described in more detail below in reference to
As illustrated in
Cabinet 140 may be any appropriate shape and size. In some embodiments, cabinet 140 has a width that permits in-wall dehumidifier 110 to be installed between wall studs 120. For example, some embodiments of cabinet 140 have a width that permits in-wall dehumidifier 110 to be installed between wall studs 120 that are 16 or 24 inches apart. In some embodiments, cabinet 140 has a depth that permits in-wall dehumidifier 110 to be blindly installed into a wall without having to remove any portion of drywall 130B from the back side of the wall. For example, cabinet 140 may have a depth that allows it to be installed in walls that utilize typical 2×4 or 2×6 wall studs 120 without removing any portion of drywall 130B.
In-wall dehumidifier 110 includes fan 410 that, when activated, draws airflow 101 into in-wall dehumidifier 110 via air diffuser 210. Fan 410 causes airflow 101 to flow through evaporator 320 and into condenser 310, and exhausts airflow 101 out of in-wall dehumidifier 110 via air diffuser 210. In some embodiments, fan 410 is located within cabinet 140 behind evaporator 320 as illustrated in
In-wall dehumidifier 110 includes various components to provide dehumidification to airflow 101. In-wall dehumidifier 110 may include condenser 310, evaporator 320, and compressor 330. Particular embodiments of condenser 310 are described in more detail below with respect to
In some embodiments, evaporator 320 is physically isolated from cabinet 140 around the edges/sides of evaporator 320. In other words, evaporator 320 may include gaps on some or all sides of evaporator 320 that allow for bypass air (i.e., air that does not enter evaporator 320) to move between evaporator 320 and cabinet 140. This helps to keep conduction to cabinet 140 to a minimum, thereby reducing or eliminating cold spots on cabinet 140 which may cause condensation.
In some embodiments, dehumidifier 110 includes various unit mounting holes 350 for mounting in-wall dehumidifier 110 to wall studs 120, and air diffuser mounting holes 360 for mounting air diffuser 210 to in-wall dehumidifier 110. In some embodiments, unit mounting holes 350 and air diffuser mounting holes 360 have different shapes as illustrated in
In some embodiments, in-wall dehumidifier 110 may include one or more sensors 370 for sensing temperature, humidity, and other environmental conditions needed for proper operation of in-wall dehumidifier 110. In some embodiments, as illustrated in
In some embodiments, condenser coils 310A-B are microchannel condensers that are made of aluminum. In general, microchannel condensers provide numerous features including a high heat transfer coefficient, a low air-side pressure restriction, and a compact design (compared to other solutions such as finned tub exchangers). These and other features make microchannel condensers good options for condensers in air conditioning systems where inlet air temperatures are high and airflow is high with low fan power. However, in a dehumidifier, the primary air side pressure drop occurs in the evaporator, and reducing condenser air restriction does not increase airflow significantly. Also, the air temperature upstream of the condenser is typically relatively low, often being below 60° F. The air temperature leaving the condenser is typically over 100° F. The air temperature across the condenser typically increases over 40° F. Using this low temperature air stream efficiently is the key to a good design. In dehumidifier designs, the refrigeration system typically needs to have at least 20° F. subcooling when a finned tube condenser is used. Since a normal microchannel condenser does not provide cross counter flow, it is very difficult to get 20° F. subcooling. The weakness of micro-channel condenser (e.g., no cross counter flow) becomes significant when air temperature rises over 40° F. across the condenser. Due to this, a typical microchannel condenser is not a good condenser for a dehumidifier. To overcome these and other issues, some embodiments of in-wall dehumidifier 110 include two condenser coils 310A-G connected in series as described herein. In this configuration, the pressure drop of two microchannel condenser coils 310A-B is still lower than that of a single finned tube coil. In addition, since a microchannel coil is thinner than a multi-row finned tube coil, the thickness of two microchannel condenser coils 310A-B is less than an equivalent single finned tube coil. By using two or more microchannel condenser coils 310A-B in series to make a cross counter flow condenser, more than 20° F. of subcooling may be achieved with a reasonable approach temperature when inlet air temperature is below 60° F. Furthermore, aluminum is typically less costly than copper, so the cost of a dual microchannel aluminum condenser is less than a single finned copper tube condenser.
In operation, refrigerant flows from evaporator 320 into compressor 330, from compressor 330 into second condenser coil 310B via superheated vapor line 1310, from second condenser coil 310B into first condenser coil 310A via condenser connection line 1320, from first condenser coil 310A back to evaporator 320 (through an expansion valve in some embodiments) via subcooled liquid line 1330. The unique configuration of condenser 310 allows the refrigerant to be managed based on the direction of airflow 101 and temperature. That is, the coldest air (i.e., airflow 101 when it first hits first condenser coil 310A) subcools the liquid refrigerant within first condenser coil 310A, and the hottest air (i.e., airflow 101 when it first hits second condenser coil 310E after leaving first condenser coil 310A) de-superheats the vapor refrigerant as it passes through second condenser coil 310B.
While a particular embodiment of condenser 310 has been described as having two condenser coils 310A-B, other embodiments may have more than two condenser coils 310. For example, other embodiments of dehumidification system 1300 may have three or four condenser coils 310. In such embodiments, condenser coils 310 are connected in series using multiple condenser connection lines 1320 as described above.
Although a particular implementation of in-wall dehumidifier 110 is illustrated and primarily described, the present disclosure contemplates any suitable implementation of in-wall dehumidifier 110, according to particular needs. Moreover, although various components of in-wall dehumidifier 110 have been depicted as being located at particular positions, the present disclosure contemplates those components being positioned at any suitable location, according to particular needs.
Herein, “or” is inclusive and not exclusive, unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Therefore, herein, “A or B” means “A, B, or both,” unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Moreover, “and” is both joint and several, unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Therefore, herein, “A and B” means “A and B, jointly or severally,” unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context.
The scope of this disclosure encompasses all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the example embodiments described or illustrated herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. The scope of this disclosure is not limited to the example embodiments described or illustrated herein. Moreover, although this disclosure describes and illustrates respective embodiments herein as including particular components, elements, feature, functions, operations, or steps, any of these embodiments may include any combination or permutation of any of the components, elements, features, functions, operations, or steps described or illustrated anywhere herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. Furthermore, reference in the appended claims to an apparatus or system or a component of an apparatus or system being adapted to, arranged to, capable of, configured to, enabled to, operable to, or operative to perform a particular function encompasses that apparatus, system, component, whether or not it or that particular function is activated, turned on, or unlocked, as long as that apparatus, system, or component is so adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or operative. Additionally, although this disclosure describes or illustrates particular embodiments as providing particular advantages, particular embodiments may provide none, some, or all of these advantages.
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20190234623 A1 | Aug 2019 | US |