INDOOR UNIT FOR AIR-CONDITIONING APPARATUS

Abstract

The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus includes: a fan; a heat exchanger located on a front side of the indoor unit with respect to the fan and on an upstream side with respect to the fan; an electrical component unit arranged in front of the heat exchanger in a horizontally long posture; a front designed panel located on a foremost side of the indoor unit in an openable and closeable manner; and an electrical component cover removably mounted to members forming a casing of the indoor unit, the electrical component cover including: a lower cover plate for covering a lower side of the electrical component unit; and a front cover plate for covering a front side of the electrical component unit. The front cover plate is exposed when the front designed panel is opened.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus, and more particularly, to an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of such a wall hanging type that an electrical component unit is arranged in front of a heat exchanger on a front side of the indoor unit.

BACKGROUND ART

Hitherto, in many of indoor units for air-conditioning apparatus of a separate type including an outdoor unit and the indoor unit, specifically, in many of indoor units of a wall hanging type to be installed to an upper portion of a wall surface of a room to be air-conditioned, an electrical component unit that is an assembly of electrical components including a control board implemented with various electrical and electronic components is arranged on any one of right and left sides of a heat exchanger that is wide in a right-and-left direction of the indoor unit. In other words, the electrical component unit and the heat exchanger are arranged adjacently to each other in the right-and-left direction.

However, in recent years, there have also been provided such indoor units that the electrical component unit is arranged in front of a lower portion of a heat exchanger on a front side of the indoor unit. Specifically, the electrical component unit and the heat exchanger are arranged adjacently to each other in a front-and-rear direction with the electrical component unit being located in front. When the electrical component unit is arranged in front of the heat exchanger, a width of an internal space of the indoor unit in a right-and-left direction is increased so as to increase a heat transfer area of the heat exchanger, to thereby increase a heat exchange amount. With this, a capability of the air-conditioning apparatus can be increased. Further, when the heat exchange amount need not be increased, a dimension of the entire indoor unit in the right-and-left direction can be reduced without changing a right-and-left width of the heat exchanger (refer, for example, to Patent Literature 1).

CITATION LIST

Patent Literature

Patent Literature 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-71164

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

Technical Problem

As for the indoor unit in which the electrical component unit is arranged in front of the heat exchanger as disclosed in Patent Literature 1, when a user opens an openable-and-closable front designed panel arranged on a foremost side of the indoor unit at the time of, for example, maintenance work on air filters of the indoor unit, the electrical component unit is exposed to the front. Thus, during such work, for example, troubles that the user carelessly touches the electrical component unit and hooks and pulls out wires may occur.

Further, when the front designed panel is opened and the electrical component unit is exposed to the front, a metal case for housing the control board and the plurality of wires are visible to the user. External appearance of the indoor unit installed to the upper portion of the wall surface serves as a part of an interior design of the room, and hence is excellent in design property. However, under the state in which the front designed panel is opened, the design properties are impaired by the exposed electrical component unit.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems as described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide such an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus that an electrical component unit arranged in front of a heat exchanger is not exposed under a state in which a front designed panel is opened.

Further, it is another object of the present invention to provide such an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus that, as described above, an electrical component unit is not exposed under a state in which a front designed panel is opened, and that a service engineer who performs inspection work and repair work on this indoor unit is allowed to easily perform the inspection work and the repair work on the electrical component unit.

Solution to Problem

According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus, including: a fan to generate an air flow to be caused to flow from an air inlet formed at a top of the indoor unit to an air outlet formed in a lower portion of the indoor unit; a heat exchanger located on a front side of the indoor unit with respect to the fan and on an upstream side with respect to the fan; an electrical component unit arranged in front of the heat exchanger in a horizontally long posture; a front designed panel located on a foremost side of the indoor unit in an openable and closeable manner; and an electrical component cover removably mounted to members forming a casing of the indoor unit, the electrical component cover including: a lower cover plate for covering a lower side of the electrical component unit; and a front cover plate for covering a front side of the electrical component unit, the front cover plate being exposed when the front designed panel is opened.

Advantageous Effects of Invention

According to the one embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to provide such an indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus that the electrical component unit arranged in front of the heat exchanger is not exposed even under the state in which the front designed panel is opened, and that, although the electrical component unit is not exposed as described above, a service engineer is allowed to easily perform the inspection work and the repair work on the electrical component unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exterior perspective view illustrating an indoor unit according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention when viewed from below.

FIG. 2 is an exterior perspective view illustrating the indoor unit of FIG. 1 when viewed from above.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view illustrating the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a separate perspective view illustrating an electrical component unit of the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating how the electrical component unit of FIG. 5 is mounted to the indoor unit.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating how panel components of a casing structure are mounted to the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating how an electrical component cover is mounted to the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a front perspective view illustrating the electrical component cover of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is a rear perspective view illustrating the electrical component cover of FIG. 8.

FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view illustrating of a lower cover plate of the electrical component cover of FIG. 8.

FIG. 12A is a partial perspective view illustrating a front cover plate of the electrical component cover of FIG. 8.

FIG. 12B is a partial perspective view illustrating a front cover plate of the electrical component cover of FIG. 8.

FIG. 13 is a sectional view illustrating the front cover plate of FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view illustrating how the front cover plate is connected to the lower cover plate.

FIG. 15 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a state of connection between a hook of the lower cover plate and an engaging wall of the front cover plate.

FIG. 16 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a movement between the hook of the lower cover plate and the engaging wall of the front cover plate.

FIG. 17 is a main-part vertical sectional view illustrating a mount state of the lower cover plate of the electrical component cover.

FIG. 18 is another main-part vertical sectional view illustrating the mount state of the lower cover plate of the electrical component cover.

FIG. 19 is a main-part vertical sectional view illustrating a mount state of the front cover plate of the electrical component cover.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating how a front designed panel is mounted to the indoor unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the front designed panel of the indoor unit of FIG. 1 is opened.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the front cover plate of the electrical component cover of the indoor unit of FIG. 1 is opened.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the electrical component cover of the indoor unit of FIG. 1 is removed.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Embodiment 1

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 are each an exterior perspective view illustrating an indoor unit 100 for an air-conditioning apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The state illustrated in FIG. 1 is viewed obliquely from below, and the state illustrated in FIG. 2 is viewed obliquely from above. Further, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the indoor unit 100, and FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view illustrating the indoor unit 100. This indoor unit 100 is connected to an outdoor unit (not shown) installed outdoors with a refrigerant pipe to form a refrigeration cycle.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, the indoor unit 100 is of such a wall hanging type as to be mounted to an upper portion of a wall surface of a room to be air-conditioned, and includes a fan 1 and an inverted V-shaped heat exchanger 2 that is arranged around the fan 1 on an upstream side with respect to the fan 1. The heat exchanger 2 includes a front upper heat exchanger 2a and a front lower heat exchanger 2b that are located respectively in an upper portion and a lower portion on a front surface side with respect to the fan 1, and a rear heat exchanger 2c located behind the front upper heat exchanger 2a. The front upper heat exchanger 2a and the front lower heat exchanger 2b are arranged in directions opposite to each other in a manner that a fitting portion between those heat exchangers is projected to the front surface side. Those heat exchangers may be formed simply integrally with each other, or may be formed integrally with each other into a curved shape projected to the front surface side. The fan 1 is an elongated cylindrical cross-flow fan, and is horizontally arranged in a manner that a longitudinal direction of the fan 1 corresponds to a right-and-left direction of the indoor unit 100.

The heat exchanger 2 is fixed to a rear case 11 as a base, and the fan 1 is rotated while being supported by the rear case 11. Both the heat exchanger 2 and the fan 1 are located in front of the rear case 11. On any one of the left and right of the heat exchanger 2 (left side of the indoor unit 100 in FIG. 3), a heat exchanger support plate 2d made of a resin is mounted, and the heat exchanger support plate 2d is fixed to a front surface of the rear case 11 with claws and screws. Further, a part of the heat exchanger support plate 2d is combined with the rear case 11 to serve as a bearing unit configured to support a rotary shaft of the fan 1. On another of the left and right of the rear case 11 (right side of the indoor unit 100 in FIG. 3), a fan motor housing case 12 is installed to project forward. A fan motor (not shown) configured to rotationally drive the fan 1 is housed in the fan motor housing case 12. In this case, the fan motor housing case 12 is regarded as a part of the rear case 11. In other words, the expression of “the front surface of the rear case 11” includes a front surface of the fan motor housing case 12.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, an air inlet 3 that allows indoor air to be sucked therethrough into the indoor unit 100 is formed through an upper surface of the indoor unit 100. Meanwhile, an air outlet 4 is formed in a lower portion of the indoor unit 100. The indoor air, which is sucked through the air inlet 3 and is cooled or warmed by the heat exchanger 2, becomes conditioned air to be blown out into the room through the air outlet 4. Such an air flow, that is, the air flow from the air inlet 3 to the air outlet 4 is generated by rotation of the fan 1. On a downstream side with respect to the heat exchanger 2, a blowout passage 5 is formed within a range of from the fan 1 to the air outlet 4, and a rear wall 11a of the blowout passage 5 is formed into a curved surface shape concaved with respect to the fan 1. This rear wall 11a is formed on the front surface of the rear case 11.

A drain pan assembly 6 is arranged below the front lower heat exchanger 2b. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the drain pan assembly 6 is also fixed to the rear case 11. Note that, a left side of the drain pan assembly 6 need not necessarily be fixed directly to the rear case 11, and may be fixed with screws to the heat exchanger support plate 2d to be supported by the rear case 11 through intermediation of the heat exchanger support plate 2d. An upper surface of the drain pan assembly 6 is used as a drain pan 6a configured to receive droplets of dew condensation water generated by dew condensation on surfaces of the front upper heat exchanger 2a and the front lower heat exchanger 2b during a cooling operation. Meanwhile, a lower surface of the drain pan assembly 6 is used as a front wall 6b of the blowout passage 5.

In the air outlet 4, a vertical vane 7 configured to control the air flow of the conditioned air to be blown out through the air outlet 4 in an upper-and-lower direction is arranged. On an upstream side with respect to the vertical vane 7 in the blowout passage 5, a horizontal vane 8 configured to control the blowout air flow in the right-and-left direction is arranged. The vertical vane 7 has a plate shape elongated in the right-and-left direction, and as illustrated in FIG. 4, divided into an upper slat 7a and a lower slat 7b in a front-and-rear direction, which are driven respectively by separate drive motors to be independently turned in the upper-and-lower direction. The upper slat 7a and the lower slat 7b are rotated while being supported by the drain pan assembly 6, and the drive motors configured to turn the upper slat 7a and the lower slat 7b are also held by the drain pan assembly 6. Angles of the upper slat 7a and the lower slat 7b are varied in the upper-and-lower direction by the drive motors so that the blowout air flow is varied in the upper-and-lower direction. Further, during a stop of operation of the indoor unit 100, as illustrated, for example, in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, the vertical vane 7 rests in a posture of closing the air outlet 4.

The horizontal vane 8 includes a plurality of slats arrayed in a right-and-left direction of the air outlet 4 and coupling arms configured to couple those slats to each other, and is fixed to the front wall 6b of the drain pan assembly 6. The coupling arms of the horizontal vane 8 are moved in the right-and-left direction by a drive motor through intermediation of a link mechanism. With this, angles of the slats are varied in the right-and-left direction so that the blowout air flow is varied in the right-and-left direction. The drive motor for the horizontal vane 8 is also held by the drain pan assembly 6.

A filter unit 9 is arranged over the front upper heat exchanger 2a, the rear heat exchanger 2c, and in front of the front upper heat exchanger 2a. The filter unit 9 includes air filters configured to capture dust in the indoor air sucked through the air inlet 3 on an upstream side with respect to the heat exchanger 2, and a filter cleaning device configured to collect the dust captured by the air filter with brushes into a dust box located in front of the front upper heat exchanger 2a. At an upper end of the filter unit 9, a top panel 10 located on an upstream side with respect to the air filter and opened in a matrix form is installed. The plurality of opening portions formed in the matrix form of the top panel 10 correspond to the air inlet 3. The filter unit 9 and the top panel 10 are assembled to each other in advance.

In addition, an electrical component unit 30 is arranged in front of the front lower heat exchanger 2b. In this case, in order to secure a larger capacity of the electrical component unit 30, the electrical component unit 30 is arranged in a manner of being inclined substantially parallel to the inclined front lower heat exchanger 2b. The electrical component unit 30 in this state is illustrated in FIG. 5. In FIG. 5, a plurality of routed wires are not shown.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the electrical component unit 30 is horizontally long, and a plurality of electrical components are installed on a front surface side of a mount base 31 obtained by molding a resin into such a plate shape elongated in the right-and-left direction. When the electrical component unit 30 is assembled into the indoor unit 100, the mount base 31 is located behind the electrical components, namely, comes close to the front lower heat exchanger 2b. In front of the front lower heat exchanger 2b, the electrical component unit 30 is arranged in a horizontally long posture along a longitudinal direction of the heat exchanger 2.

At a central part of the mount base 31, a control board case 32 having a metal external surface and housing a control board 32a configured to control the operation of the indoor unit 100 is mounted. The control board case 32 is a main electrical component of the electrical component unit 30, and includes a box-shaped board box 32b having claws configured to removably fix the control board 32a having electronic components including a microcomputer mounted therein, and a lid 32c configured to cover an opening of the board box 32b on the front surface side. Further, although not shown, a plurality of cutout grooves or holes that allow the wires to be routed therein are formed in right-and-left lateral surfaces or a lower surface of the board box 32b.

The claws projected from the control board case 32 are engaged with hooks formed on the mount base 31, each having an L-shape in cross-section, and further screw fastening is performed. In this way, the control board case 32 is fixed to the mount base 31. The lid 32c is mounted to be removable from the board box 32b. Specifically, under a state in which the control board case 32 is mounted to the mount base 31, only the lid 32c can be removed from and mounted to the board box 32b.

In FIG. 5, on the mount base 31, an electrostatic atomizing device 33 is fixed on a left side with respect to the control board case 32. At this part on the mount base 31, a substantially rectangular communication hole that communicates the front and the rear to each other is formed, and the electrostatic atomizing device 33 is fixed with claws in a manner of being projected also to a rear surface side of the mount base 31 through this communication hole.

The electrostatic atomizing device 33 is a device including a Peltier unit, an atomizing electrode, and a high voltage generating circuit. Dew condensation water is generated by dew condensation of moisture in the indoor air using a cooling surface of the Peltier unit, and is conveyed to a distal end of the atomizing electrode. In this state, a high voltage generated by the high voltage generating circuit is applied to the atomizing electrode. With this, the water at the distal end of the atomizing electrode is electrostatically atomized into a large amount of electrically charged fine water particles (mist) of a nanometer size. The charged fine water particles thus generated pass through the heat exchanger 2 (mainly through front lower heat exchanger 2b) together with the indoor air sucked through the air inlet 3, and are discharged into the room together with the conditioned air through the air outlet 4. With this, an effect of moisturizing the skin and the hair of residents in the room can be obtained. The electrostatic atomizing device 33 and the control board 32a in the control board case 32 are connected to each other with power wires (wiring) configured to supply electric power to the Peltier unit and other power wires (wiring) configured to supply a voltage of several volts to the high voltage generating circuit.

Further, on a right side with respect to the control board case 32 on the mount base 31, a remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and a display device 35 are installed obliquely downward to the front, and above thereon, an emergency operation switch 36 is installed full face on those units. In addition, an infrared sensor unit 37 is installed on a right side with respect to the display device 35, and a terminal block 38 configured to relay a power cable 38a to be inserted into a receptacle in the room is installed on the infrared sensor unit 37.

The remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 includes a receiving unit configured to receive instruction signals from a remote controller (not shown) capable of infrared bidirectional communication with the indoor unit 100, and a transmitting unit configured to transmit information signals to the remote controller. Both the receiving unit and the transmitting unit are connected to the control board 32a with signal lines (wiring).

The display device 35 is a device configured to notify operating conditions and setting modes to users by using luminous display. A plurality of light transmissive windows opened in patterns different from each other are arranged in front of a plurality of LEDs in a plurality of arrays, and light beams of the LEDs passing through the light transmissive windows are displayed in the patterns of the openings of the windows. The LEDs of the display device 35 and the control board 32a are connected to each other with signal lines (wiring) for lighting control.

The emergency operation switch 36 is a start button to be pressed by an installation engineer at the time of starting a first operation after installation of the indoor unit 100 to the wall surface. Further, when the remote controller is unusable due to a failure, the user can use the emergency operation switch 36 to start and stop the operation. The emergency operation switch 36 and the control board 32a are also connected to each other with signal lines (wiring).

The infrared sensor unit 37 includes an infrared sensor 37a projected downward, and a drive motor located on the infrared sensor 37a and configured to turn the infrared sensor 37a in the right-and-left direction. A driving force of the drive motor causes the infrared sensor 37a to be turned in the right-and-left direction so as to acquire a thermograph of the room. With this, temperature distributions on a floor surface and the wall surface and positions of the residents in the room are detected. Both the infrared sensor 37a and the drive motor are connected to the control board 32a with signal lines (wiring).

Not only the power cable 38a connected to an outside receptacle, but also a communication line and a power line connected to an outdoor unit (not shown) are connected to the terminal block 38. The terminal block 38 relays those external wires to the control board 32a. The terminal block 38 and the control board 32a are connected to each other with a plurality of wires for the relay.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory perspective view illustrating how the electrical component unit 30 is mounted to the indoor unit 100. As illustrated in FIG. 6, the electrical component unit 30 is mounted in a manner of being arranged in front of the heat exchanger 2. At the time point when the electrical component unit 30 is mounted, the drain pan assembly 6 to which the vertical vane 7 and the horizontal vane 8 are mounted has already been mounted to the rear case 11. On a right side of the electrical component unit 30, the mount base 31 and the front surface of the rear case 11 are fastened with screws. On a left side of the electrical component unit 30, the mount base 31 and a front surface of the heat exchanger support plate 2d are fastened with screws. With this, the electrical component unit 30 is fixed. At this time, as illustrated in FIG. 4, in front of the front lower heat exchanger 2b, the electrical component unit 30 is substantially parallel to the front lower heat exchanger 2b.

After the electrical component unit 30 is mounted, the filter unit 9 is mounted. A right side of the filter unit 9 is fixed with screws to the front surface of the mount base 31 for the electrical component unit 30, and a left side of the filter unit 9 is fixed with screws to an upper surface of the heat exchanger support plate 2d. The screw fixing on the right side may be performed with respect to the rear case 11. In this case, which of the electrical component unit 30 and the filter unit 9 is mounted first is not particularly limited.

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a state in which the indoor unit 100 is being assembled. Specifically, after the electrical component unit 30 and the filter unit 9 are mounted, a plurality of resin plate-like members forming a casing of the indoor unit 100 are mounted together with the rear case 11 and the top panel 10. As illustrated in FIG. 7, a right lateral panel 13 that exhibits a design of a right lateral surface of the indoor unit 100, a left lateral panel 14 that exhibits a design of a left lateral surface of the same, and a coupling plate 15 that exhibits a design of a lower surface on a rear side (wall surface side) with respect to the air outlet 4 cooperatively with a lower surface of the rear case 11 are fixed to the rear case 11 with claws and screws.

The coupling plate 15 has a rectangular shape elongated in the right-and-left direction, and a front end surface on a longitudinal side of the coupling plate 15 forms a depth edge of the rectangular air outlet 4. Prior to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, the coupling plate 15 is temporarily fixed with the claws to a center of a lower portion of a front surface of the rear case 11. Then, the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 are fixed with the claws and the screws to the rear case 11. At this time, protrusions formed at both right-and-left ends of the coupling plate 15 are sandwiched between the right lateral panel 13 or the left lateral panel 14 and the rear case 11. With this, the coupling plate 15 is also fixed.

The right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 to form the casing of the indoor unit 100 and close the lateral surfaces (end surfaces in the right-and-left direction) of the indoor unit 100 are each a plate-like member formed by molding a resin, and each include flange portions projecting inward (toward center of the indoor unit 100 in the right-and-left direction) at a substantially right angle from end surfaces on three sides except that on a rear surface side, that is, an upper surface, a lower surface, and a front surface. Of the flange portions formed on the three sides, a flange projecting from the upper surface is referred to as an upper flange 41, a flange from the lower surface is referred to as a lower flange 42, and a flange on the front surface is referred to as a front flange 43. The right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 each need to be fastened with at least one screw so that the fixing with the claws is not cancelled to cause disengagement even when a certain shock is applied. In this indoor unit 100, a rear side of each of the lower flanges 42 is fastened with a screw to the lower portion of the front surface of the rear case 11. This screw fastening is performed near the positions of sandwiching the left and right end portions of the coupling plate 15.

In each of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, a front part of the lower flange 42 forms an inclined surface 421, specifically, forms an outward surface that is directed somewhat forward rather than vertically downward (direction to a floor surface with respect to the wall surface to which the indoor unit 100 is mounted). Angular holes 44 are formed at two positions at a certain interval through each of the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42, which are inclined forward. Further, in each of the front flanges 43, one front angular hole 45 is formed near a center in a height direction, and one threaded hole 46 is formed in a lower portion. The threaded hole 46 is bossed to the rear.

FIG. 8 is also an exploded perspective view illustrating the state in which the indoor unit 100 is being assembled. Specifically, the electrical component unit 30 and an electrical component cover 20 configured to cover a lower side and a front side of the electrical component unit 30, which are characteristic components of the indoor unit 100, are mounted to the indoor unit 100 to which the right lateral panel 13, the left lateral panel 14, and the coupling plate 15 have already been mounted. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the electrical component cover 20 includes a lower cover plate 21 configured to cover the lower side of the electrical component unit 30, and a front cover plate 22 configured to cover the front side of the electrical component unit 30. The lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 are each a plate member obtained by molding a resin into a substantially rectangular shape elongated (horizontally long) in the right-and-left direction. The lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20 are not an integrated component but are separate components. Specifically, mutual longitudinal side portions to be fitted to each other are connected through intermediation of such a hinge structure that one side can be turned about hinge connecting portions with respect to another side.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating the electrical component cover 20 when viewed from the front side, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating the electrical component cover 20 when viewed from the rear surface side. Further, FIG. 11 is a partial perspective view illustrating a left part of the lower cover plate 21 when viewed from a back surface side. FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B are each a partial perspective view illustrating the front cover plate 22. In FIG. 12A, a left part of the front cover plate 22 is viewed from the front side. In FIG. 12B, the left part of the front cover plate 22 is viewed from the back surface side. Further, FIG. 13 is a vertical sectional view illustrating the front cover plate 22, specifically, a view illustrating a cross-section taken along the arrows Z-Z in FIG. 12B.

First, description is made of the lower cover plate 21. As illustrated in FIG. 9 to FIG. 11, the lower cover plate 21 includes two transverse side-portion claws 21a that extend in a plate-thickness direction at a certain interval in a transverse direction on each side in the right-and-left direction, specifically, from both right-and-left ends of a non-designed surface 212 to face the electrical component unit 30, namely, from both right-and-left ends of a back surface of a designed surface 211 as an outward surface. Hooking portions at distal ends of the transverse side-portion claws 21a are formed to project outward oppositely to each other in the right-and-left direction.

Further, one of a pair of the longitudinal side portions of the lower cover plate 21 having the substantially rectangular shape is located on the rear side under a state in which the electrical component cover 20 is mounted to the indoor unit 100. Along the one longitudinal side portion, a plurality of longitudinal side-portion claws 21b are formed at intervals in the right-and-left direction in a manner of projecting from the non-designed surface 212 further to the rear side. Hooking portions at distal ends of the longitudinal side-portion claws 21b are directed downward. In other words, the hooking portions are projected to the designed surface 211 side. Another of the longitudinal side portions is located on the front side under the state in which the electrical component cover 20 is mounted to the indoor unit 100. Along the another longitudinal side portion, a plurality of hooks 21c each having an L-shape in cross-section are formed to project from the non-designed surface 212 at intervals in the right-and-left direction in such a manner that distal ends of the hooks 21c are directed to the front side.

Note that, on a right side of the lower cover plate 21, a sensor hole 21d that allows the infrared sensor 37a of the infrared sensor unit 37 in the electrical component unit 30 to be inserted therethrough is formed. In the electrical component unit 30, only the infrared sensor 37a of the infrared sensor unit 37 is inserted through the sensor hole 21d and exceptionally projected from the designed surface 211 of the lower cover plate 21 under the state in which the electrical component cover 20 is mounted.

Next, description is made of the front cover plate 22. As illustrated in FIG. 9 to FIG. 12 (except FIG. 11), the front cover plate 22 similarly has a designed surface 221 as an outward surface, and a non-designed surface 222 as a back surface of the designed surface 221. In an upper portion of the front cover plate 22, one upper claw 22a is formed to extend on each side in the right-and-left directions, specifically, from both right-and-left ends of the non-designed surface 222 to the electrical component unit 30 side. Hooking portions at distal ends of the upper claws 22a are formed to project outward oppositely to each other in the right-and-left direction.

Further, in a lower portion (positions near a lower end) of the front cover plate 22, a plurality of quadrangular holes 22b are formed in an array at intervals in the right-and-left direction. The intervals between the plurality of quadrangular holes 22b are substantially the same as those in the right-and-left direction between the plurality of hooks 21c of the lower cover plate 21, and the quadrangular holes 22b are formed as many as the hooks 21c. Further, as illustrated in the cross-section of FIG. 13 inclusive of the quadrangular hole 22b, above each of the quadrangular holes 22b, an engaging wall 22c is formed to project from the non-designed surface 222. Still further, screw through-holes 22d are formed at a total of three positions, specifically, lower portions on right-and-left sides of the front cover plate 22, and an upper portion at a center of the front cover plate 22 in the right-and-left direction. In addition, a rectangular window 22e is opened at a right lower portion of the front cover plate 22.

Next, the plurality of hooks 21c of the lower cover plate 21 are inserted into the quadrangular holes 22b of the front cover plate 22 so that the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 are connected to each other. FIG. 14 is a sectional view illustrating how the front cover plate 22 is mounted (connected) to the lower cover plate 21. As illustrated in FIG. 14, in order to connect those plates to each other, the front cover plate 22 and the lower cover plate 21 are vertically arrayed with the lower cover plate 21 being located beneath, and the designed surfaces 211 and 221 are directed to the same sides and substantially parallel to each other. In this state, the distal end of the hook 21c is inserted into the quadrangular hole 22b at a corresponding position from below. Then, the lower cover plate 21 is turned about the hook 21c in such a direction that the non-designed surfaces 212 and 222 come close to each other. With this, the distal end part of the inserted hook 21c is hooked to the engaging wall 22c projected from the non-designed surface 222 of the front cover plate 22. In this way, the connection of the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 is completed, and the electrical component cover 20 is assembled.

FIG. 15 is a vertical sectional view illustrating a state of the connection between the hook 21c and the engaging wall 22c. The state illustrated in FIG. 15 is a normal state of the electrical component cover 20 under the state of being mounted to the indoor unit 100. In other words, the front cover plate 22 is positioned substantially parallel to a vertical direction with the designed surface 221 being directed to the front side. At this time, the distal end part of the hook 21c is hooked to an upper surface of the engaging wall 22c. In this state, the lower cover plate 21 does not form a right angle with respect to the front cover plate 22, and an obtuse angle is formed between the non-designed surfaces 212 and 222 on both sides. In this case, an angle of 110 degrees is formed between those surfaces. The lower cover plate 21 is inclined to be parallel to the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14.

A function of a hinge structure is exerted by the connection between the hook 21c and the engaging wall 22c. When the lower cover plate 21 is fixed, the front cover plate 22 is turnable forward about connecting portions between the front cover plate 22 and the hooks 21c, that is, about the lower portion of the front cover plate 22. FIG. 16 is a sectional view illustrating a hinge movement between the hook 21c and the engaging wall 22c. As illustrated in FIG. 16, a lower end part of the designed surface 221 of the front cover plate 22 having turned forward with respect to the fixed lower cover plate 21 comes into contact with a front end part (another longitudinal side portion along which the hooks 21c are formed) of the non-designed surface 212 of the lower cover plate 21. With this, the front cover plate 22 is restricted from being turned further. The front cover plate 22 is restricted from being turned before the front cover plate 22 and the lower cover plate 21 are parallel to each other, and hence the connection is not disengaged as a result of the turning. The connection is not disengaged unless the hooks 21c are pulled out of the quadrangular holes 22b by pulling and separating the lower cover plate 21 from the front cover plate 22 under a state in which the front cover plate 22 and the lower cover plate 21, none of which is fixed, are parallel to each other.

As described above, the electrical component cover 20 obtained by assembling the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 to each other is mounted to the indoor unit 100 from its front surface side as illustrated in FIG. 8. FIG. 17 is a main-part vertical sectional view illustrating a mount state of the electrical component cover 20, specifically, illustrating a hooking state of the longitudinal side-portion claw 21b of the lower cover plate 21. As illustrated in FIG. 17, a front lower portion of the drain pan assembly 6 is projected downward with respect to the electrical component unit 30, and faces the front side. At a front end of the downward projecting part, a hooking protrusion 6d is formed to project upward. A plurality of hooking protrusions 6d may be formed in the right-and-left direction at the same intervals as those of the plurality of longitudinal side-portion claws 21b of the lower cover plate 21, or the single hooking protrusion 6d may be formed continuously over the right-and-left direction.

Note that, on a front surface side of the drain pan assembly 6, a heat insulator 6c is installed in contact with the drain pan 6a. With this, even when the drain pan 6a is cooled by the droplets of cool drain water from the heat exchanger 2 onto the drain pan 6a during the cooling operation, the drain pan 6a is prevented from causing the dew condensation of the moisture in the indoor air on the front surface side of the drain pan assembly 6. The hooking protrusion 6d is exposed from the heat insulator 6c. The heat insulator 6c used in this case is made of polystyrene (PS) foam obtained by foam injection molding of polystyrene.

As illustrated in FIG. 17, first, the longitudinal side-portion claw 21b of the lower cover plate 21 is passed below the electrical component unit 30, and then entirely hooked over the hooking protrusion 6d from above. In this state, own weight of the electrical component cover 20 is supported by the hooking protrusion 6d. Thus, even when an operator releases the electrical component cover 20 from his/her hand, the electrical component cover 20 is not separated from the indoor unit 100. Next, the lower cover plate 21 is positioned in the right-and-left direction such that the transverse side-portion claws 21a of the lower cover plate 21 come to positions of the angular holes 44 formed through the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. In this state, the transverse side-portion claws 21a are inserted into corresponding ones of the angular holes 44.

When the operator presses both right-and-left sides of the lower cover plate 21 from the designed surface 211 side against the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42, the two transverse side-portion claws 21a on each side are pressed against rims of corresponding ones of the angular holes 44 and elastically deformed inward, to thereby enter the angular holes 44. FIG. 18 is a main-part vertical sectional view illustrating a claw fixing structure formed of the transverse side-portion claw 21a and the angular hole 44. As illustrated in FIG. 18, the transverse side-portion claw 21a that has been inserted by being elastically deformed inward (toward center in the right-and-left direction) is restored from the elastic deformation after the distal end hooking portion projected outward passes through the angular hole 44, and the distal end hooking portion is hooked to the rim on a back side of the angular hole 44. In this way, the hook fixing structure is completed.

With this, both the right-and-left sides of the lower cover plate 21 are overlapped with the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, and the entire lower cover plate 21 is inclined forward at the same angle as that of the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42. In addition, the transverse side-portion claws 21a and the angular holes 44 on both the right-and-left sides function as the claw fixing structure, and the plurality of longitudinal side-portion claws 21b on the rear side and the hooking protrusion 6d function as a hooking structure. With this, the lower cover plate 21 is fixed to the indoor unit 100.

After the lower cover plate 21 is mounted and fixed, the front cover plate 22 is fixed to the indoor unit 100. Under the state in which the lower cover plate 21 has already been fixed, the front cover plate 22 is connected to the lower cover plate 21 through intermediation of the hooks 21c. Thus, the front cover plate 22 has already been positioned with respect to the front flanges 43 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. With this, when the operator presses both the right-and-left sides of the front cover plate 22 from the designed surface 221 side against the front flanges 43, the upper claws 22a on the left and right of the front cover plate 22 are each inserted into the front angular hole 45 in an upper portion of the front flange 43.

FIG. 19 is a main-part vertical sectional view illustrating another claw fixing structure formed of the upper claw 22a and the front angular hole 45. Similarly to the transverse side-portion claw 21a of the lower cover plate 21, the upper claw 22a enters the front angular hole 45 while being elastically deformed inward, and is restored from the elastic deformation after the distal end hooking portion projected outward passes through the front angular hole 45. Then, the distal end hooking portion is hooked to a rim on a back side of the front angular hole 45. In this way, the another claw fixing structure is completed.

The front cover plate 22 is mounted and fixed with the another claw fixing structure formed of the upper claw 22a and the front angular hole 45 on each of the right-and-left sides. For the reason described below, the front cover plate 22 is fixed also with screws. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the front cover plate 22 is fixed with screws 47 at the three positions, specifically, the lower portions on both the right-and-left sides and the upper portion at the center. The screws 47 passed through the screw through-holes 22d at the lower two positions on both the right-and-left sides are threadedly engaged with the threaded holes 46 formed in the lower portions of the front flanges 43 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. In this way, screw fastening of the front cover plate 22 with respect to the front flanges 43 is performed. Further, the screw 47 passed through the screw through-hole 22d in the upper portion at the center is threadedly engaged with a threaded hole (not shown) formed in a front surface of the filter unit 9. In this way, screw fastening of the front cover plate 22 with respect to the filter unit 9 is performed. The threaded hole to be used at the time of this screw fastening in the upper portion at the center for the front cover plate 22 and the mount base 31 may be formed through the mount base 31 of the electrical component unit 30.

With this, mounting of the electrical component cover 20 is completed. A front edge of the air outlet 4 having a rectangular shape in plan view is formed of a depth-side end surface of the lower cover plate 21 of the electrical component cover 20, the depth edge of the air outlet 4 is formed of the front end surface of the coupling plate 15, and right-and-left lateral edges of the air outlet 4 are formed respectively of end portions of the lower flanges 42 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14.

After that, a front designed panel 16 is mounted to a foremost side of the indoor unit 100. With this, assembly of the indoor unit 100 is completed. FIG. 20 is a perspective view illustrating how the front designed panel 16 is mounted. Rotary shafts 16a are formed integrally with upper portions on both the right-and-left sides of a rear surface (non-designed surface) of the front designed panel 16, and the rotary shafts 16a are fitted to bearings 431 formed respectively in the upper portions of the front flanges 43 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. In this way, the front designed panel 16 is mounted.

The rotary shafts 16a are supported in a rotatable manner by the bearings 431, and the front designed panel 16 is turned in the vertical direction about the rotary shafts 16a in the upper portions. With this, a front surface of the indoor unit 100 can be opened and closed. When the front designed panel 16 is closed, stationary claws 16b formed in lower portions on both the right-and-left sides of the rear surface of the front designed panel 16 are nipped by catch portions 432 formed in the lower portions of the front flanges 43. With this, a stable static state is maintained. The openable-and-closable front designed panel 16 is located on the foremost side of the indoor unit 100.

When the front designed panel 16 is opened by being turned upward at a certain angle, the position of the rotary shafts 16a is maintained due to the configuration of the bearings 431 such that the state of the front designed panel 16 is maintained to be opened at the certain angle. In this state, the user can perform cleaning work on the filter unit 9. In this indoor unit 100, the certain angle at which the opened state of the front designed panel 16 is maintained (hereinafter referred to as “opening maintaining angle”) is set to 70 degrees upward with respect to an angle in the closed state. When the front designed panel 16 is opened at an angle more than 70 degrees, the rotary shafts 16a can be mounted to and removed from the bearings 431. With this, the front designed panel 16 can be removed and mounted.

The indoor unit 100 in the perspective view of FIG. 1 is assembled as described above and viewed obliquely below from the front on a premise of being installed to a wall surface in a room. The front designed panel 16 is closed, and the air outlet 4 is also closed by the vertical vane 7 because the operation is stopped. This state corresponds to the vertical sectional view of FIG. 4. As illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, the lower cover plate 21 of the electrical component cover 20 configured to cover the lower side of the electrical component unit 30 is located between the front end of the air outlet 4 closed by the vertical vane 7 and a lower end of the closed front designed panel 16. The designed surface 211 of the lower cover plate 21 faces the inside of the room, and the infrared sensor 37a is projected from the designed surface 211 through the sensor hole 21d without exposing the electrical component unit 30. Irrespective of whether the front designed panel 16 is opened or closed, the designed surface 211 of the lower cover plate 21 is exposed to the inside of the room.

When the lower cover plate 21 is colored with the same color as that of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, or that of the front designed panel 16, a design of the indoor unit 100 is unified, and different colors may be used as accent colors in the design of the indoor unit 100. As described above, the lower cover plate 21 is directed obliquely downward to the front, and front surfaces of the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the display device 35 of the electrical component unit 30 are substantially parallel to the lower cover plate 21. In other words, the front surfaces of the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the display device 35 face the non-designed surface 212 of the lower cover plate 21 under a substantially parallel state. With this, during the operation of the indoor unit 100, content to be displayed on the display device 35 transmits through the lower cover plate 21 so that the user in the room can recognize the displayed content. Further, similarly, through the lower cover plate 21, the bidirectional communication between the remote controller that is configured to use infrared signals and the indoor unit 100 can be performed.

Next, description is made of a case where the user opens the front designed panel 16 so as, for example, to maintain the filter unit 9. The maintenance of the filter unit 9 in this case includes removal and remounting of the dust box of a filter cleaning device at the time of disposal of dust collected in the dust box, and removal and remounting of the air filters at the time of rinsing and drying of the air filters. FIG. 21 is a perspective view illustrating the indoor unit 100 under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is opened at the opening maintaining angle, which is viewed obliquely below from the front as in FIG. 1.

As illustrated in FIG. 21, even when the front designed panel 16 is opened, the front side of the electrical component unit 30 is covered with the front cover plate 22. Thus, although the electrical component unit 30 is arranged in front of the heat exchanger 2 (specifically, front lower heat exchanger 2b), the electrical component unit 30 is not exposed to the front except in that the emergency operation switch 36 is exposed through the window 22e. The emergency operation switch 36 may be used by the user in case of a failure of the remote controller, and hence is exposed to the front through the window 22e without being hidden with the front cover plate 22 to be recognized and operated by the user.

The electrical component unit 30 including the various wires connected through the control board case 32 is hidden on a rear surface side of the front cover plate 22. Thus, the user is prevented from touching the electrical component unit 30 during the maintenance of the filter unit 9. Specifically, the wires are not carelessly hooked and pulled out or disconnected, and hence maintenance work can be safely performed.

Further, the front cover plate 22, which is obtained by resin molding similarly to the right lateral panel 13, the left lateral panel 14, and the lower cover plate 21, is exposed to the front, and hence design properties are significantly higher than those in a case where the metal surface of the control board case 32 or the various wires are exposed. Thus, the indoor unit 100, which serves as a part of an interior design of the room, allows the user to perform the maintenance work without being conscious of the electrical components and the wires even under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is opened. In this way, excellent design properties that are equal to those under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is closed are not impaired.

The front cover plate 22 may be colored with the same color as that of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, or that of the lower cover plate 21. With this, even when the front designed panel 16 is opened, a design can be reliably unified. Alternatively, different colors may be used on purpose as accent colors.

The lower cover plate 21 is a plate component obtained by molding a resin into a substantially rectangular shape elongated in the right-and-left direction. The lower cover plate 21 is fixed not only with the fixing structure formed of the transverse side-portion claws 21a on both the right-and-left sides, but also with the plurality of longitudinal side-portion claws 21b that are hooked to the hooking protrusion 6d on the front surface of the drain pan assembly 6 along the longitudinal side portion on the rear side at the appropriate intervals in the right-and-left direction. Further, the longitudinal side portion on the front side is suspended by the plurality of hooks 21c at the appropriate intervals in the right-and-left direction from the front cover plate 22 that is fixed with the screws to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. Thus, there is no such risk in that the lower cover plate 21 is curved in the right-and-left direction and swells downward along with the elapse of time, and hence design properties can be maintained over a long period of time. Note that, the numbers and the intervals of the six longitudinal side-portion claws 21b and the six hooks 21c used in this indoor unit 100 are matters of design variation, and hence may be appropriately selected in accordance with size of the lower cover plate 21.

Further, the front cover plate 22 is another a plate component obtained by molding a resin into a substantially rectangular shape elongated in the right-and-left direction. The upper portion of the front cover plate 22 is fixed not only with the fixing structure formed of the upper claws 22a on both the right-and-left sides, but also with the screw fastened at the center to the filter unit 9. Meanwhile, the lower portion of the front cover plate 22 is fastened with the screws to the front flanges 43 respectively on the right-and-left sides, and in addition, receives own weight of the lower cover plate 21 through intermediation of the plurality of hooks 21c of the lower cover plate 21, which are hooked to the engaging walls 22c on the non-designed surface 222 at the appropriate intervals in the right-and-left direction. Thus, there is no such risk in that the front cover plate 22 is curved in the right-and-left direction and swells forward along with the elapse of time.

The front cover plate 22 is turnable downward to the front about the lower portion to function as the hinge connecting structure. The front cover plate 22 is fixed not only with the claw fixing structures, but also with the screws 47 at the three positions. Thus, even when the user carelessly touches or strikes something against the front cover plate 22 in the middle of the maintenance of the filter unit 9, there is no such risk in that the upper claws 22a are disengaged from the front angular holes 45 to cause the front cover plate 22 to be turned, that is, opened. In addition, the electrical component unit 30 is not inadvertently exposed.

Further, the longitudinal side portion on a front side of the lower cover plate 21 is fixed through intermediation of the hooks 21c to the front cover plate 22 that is fixed with the screws. In addition, fixing is performed also with the longitudinal side-portion claws 21b on the rear side. In this state, the lower cover plate 21 cannot be elastically deformed, and hence the transverse side-portion claws 21a hooked to the angular holes 44 cannot be disengaged. Therefore, as long as the front cover plate 22 is fixed, the lower cover plate 21 is not separated. At the time of the maintenance of the filter unit 9, the user does not remove the screws 47 of the front cover plate 22 that is irrelevant to the filter unit 9. Thus, there is no such risk in that the electrical component cover 20 is separated, which results from inadvertence of the user.

Further, the electrical component cover 20 exerts great advantages at the time of wiring work and maintenance such as inspection work and repair work on the electrical component unit 30 after the installation of the indoor unit 100 to the wall surface in the room. At the time of inspection or repair in case of a failure of the indoor unit 100, a service engineer inspects, repairs, or replaces various electrical components of the electrical component unit 30. At the time of maintenance or repair of the electrical component unit 30, the service engineer first opens or removes the front designed panel 16 to expose the front cover plate 22. Then, the service engineer removes the three screws 47 fixing the front cover plate 22.

Under the state in which the fastening with the screws 47 is cancelled, the upper portion of the front cover plate 22 is fixed only with the upper claws 22a on the right-and-left sides. Thus, when the service engineer holds and pulls the upper portion to a near side, in an opposite manner at the time of the insertion, the distal end hooking portions of the upper claws 22a are pulled out of the front angular holes 45 while being elastically deformed inward by being pressed along the rims of the front angular holes 45. With this, the claw fixing structure formed of the upper claws 22a is disengaged.

After the fixing with the upper claws 22a is cancelled, the front cover plate 22 can be turned about the hooks 21c as the hinge connecting structure with respect to the lower cover plate 21 that is fixed with the transverse side-portion claws 21a and the longitudinal side-portion claws 21b, and hence can be tilted to the near side. In this way, the front surface side of the electrical component unit 30 can be opened by turning and opening the front cover plate 22 to the near side. FIG. 22 is a perspective view illustrating the state in which the front cover plate 22 is turned and opened. In FIG. 22, the front designed panel 16 can be removed so that the work can be performed. In FIG. 22 and FIG. 23 to be described later, the front designed panel 16 is not illustrated.

The front cover plate 22 is inclined with respect to the lower cover plate 21 until the obtuse angle to be formed between the non-designed surfaces 212 and 222 on both sides reaches approximately 165 degrees as illustrated in FIG. 16. When the front cover plate 22 is turned and inclined in this way, the front surface of the electrical component unit 30 is opened as illustrated in FIG. 22. With this, the service engineer is allowed to check a condition of the electrical component unit 30 obliquely from above. In this way, visual inspection can be performed. Note that, in this state, visual inspection on the front surfaces of the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the display device 35, which are arranged parallel to the lower cover plate 21, cannot be performed.

Further, in this state, when the service engineer applies a force for attracting the front cover plate 22 to the near side, a force for separating the lower cover plate 21 from the front inclined surface 421 of the lower flanges 42 is applied to the lower cover plate 21 through intermediation of the hooks 21c. With this, the transverse side-portion claws 21a on both the right-and-left sides are pulled out respectively of the angular holes 44 while being elastically deformed inward. With this, the claw fixing structure formed of the transverse side-portion claws 21a is disengaged.

The longitudinal side-portion claws 21b on the rear side are hooked over the hooking protrusion 6d of the drain pan assembly 6. Thus, under a state in which the fixing with the transverse side-portion claws 21a has already been cancelled, the service engineer can disengage the longitudinal side-portion claws 21b that are hooked to the hooking protrusions 6d only by lifting up the lower cover plate 21 together with the front cover plate 22. In this way, the service engineer disengages the hooked longitudinal side-portion claws 21b and attracts the lower cover plate 21 toward himself/herself. Then, removal of the electrical component cover 20 is completed.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the electrical component cover 20 is removed from the indoor unit 100. As in FIG. 22, the front designed panel 16 is removed. As illustrated in FIG. 23, when the electrical component cover 20 is removed, the electrical component unit 30 appears on the foremost side, and the front and the lower side of the electrical component unit 30 are opened without being blocked by any other components. Thus, a working space in which the service engineer performs inspection, repair, component replacement, and the like of the electrical component unit 30 can be sufficiently secured, and such work can be easily performed. In addition, the service engineer is allowed to perform work without twisting his/her body while facing a target electrical component. In this way, safe and accurate work can be performed.

Inspection work on the control board 32a, which needs to be inspected more frequently than the other ones of the plurality of electrical components installed in the electrical component unit 30, can be performed only by removing the lid 32c of the control board case 32 in the state of FIG. 23. When the lid 32c is removed, the control board 32a is exposed to the front, and hence, for example, the inspection work using a multimeter can be easily performed. Further, even in a case where a failure is detected in the control board 32a and there arises a necessity for replacing the control board 32a with a new one, when the lid 32c is opened, the various wires connected to the control board 32a can be inserted and pulled out, and the control board 32a can be mounted and removed. In this way, an old board can be easily replaced with a new one.

Also on the other electrical components including the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 that is directed obliquely downward to the front, the work such as inspection, repair, and replacement can be easily, safely, and accurately performed in the sufficient working space while the service engineer faces those components. Note that, at the time of performing the inspection work and the repair work on the electrical component unit 30 by removing the electrical component cover 20, the front designed panel 16 need not necessarily be removed as in the example illustrated in FIG. 23, and such work may be performed under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is opened at the opening maintaining angle. After the necessary work on the electrical components is completed, the service engineer only needs to mount the removed electrical component cover 20 by the procedure described above from the lower cover plate 21. With this, excellent design properties under the state in which the electrical component unit 30 is covered can be restored.

Note that, in the indoor unit 100, front sides of vicinities of both right-and-left ends of the electrical component unit 30 are covered respectively with the front flanges 43 of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. The left lateral panel 14 covers only the mount base 31, namely, electrical components are not arranged behind the front flange 43. Meanwhile, the right lateral panel 13 covers the terminal block 38 that is an electrical component. Although having a function to relay the wires from the power receptacle and the outdoor unit (none of which is shown), this terminal block 38 is less liable to fail, and hence is arranged behind the front flange 43 in this case.

Note that, as a matter of course, inspection work and repair work can be performed also on the terminal block 38. As described above, the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 are also components that are mounted immediately before the electrical component cover 20 is mounted, and hence can be removed from and remounted to the rear case 11 as long as the electrical component cover 20 is removed even after the indoor unit 100 is installed to the wall surface in the room. In case certain work needs to be performed on the terminal block 38, which is not often performed, such work can be performed by removing the right lateral panel 13. Further, when both the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 are removed, the entire electrical component unit 30 can be removed and remounted even under the state in which the indoor unit 100 is installed to the wall surface in the room.

Note that, the entire front side of the electrical component unit 30 may be covered with the front cover plate 22. In this case, it is preferred that the claw fixing and the screw fastening of the front cover plate 22 be performed with respect to the mount base 31 of the electrical component unit 30.

In the electrical component cover 20 of the indoor unit 100, the hooks 21c are used as the hinge connecting structure (turnable connecting structure) of the front cover plate 22 with respect to the fixed lower cover plate 21. However, a hinge connection structure of any other type may be employed as long as the front cover plate 22 mounted parallel to the vertical direction in the normal state can be turned forward about a vicinity of a lower edge of the front cover plate 22, and the front side of the electrical component unit 30 can be opened.

Specifically, a front edge of the lower cover plate 21 and the lower edge of the front cover plate 22 may be connected to each other with thin pieces so that the front cover plate 22 can be turned forward by elastic deformation of the thin pieces. In a case where such thin hinges are used, when the front cover plate 22 that has been turned and opened is released from his/her hand, the front cover plate 22 is closed by being turned in a closing direction due to an elastic force of the thin pieces. Further, in order to remove the lower cover plate 21 under the state in which the front cover plate 22 is opened, when the front cover plate 22 is attracted to the near side, the thin pieces may be stretched or cut off. As a countermeasure, the front edge or lateral edges of the lower cover plate 21 need to be directly held to apply a force for separating the lower cover plate 21 from the front inclined surfaces 421 of the lower flanges 42. However, when the thin hinges are used, there is an advantage in that a turning angle of the front cover plate 22 can be increased.

Meanwhile, the hooks 21c have such a structure as to be disengaged when the front cover plate 22 is turned to be parallel to the lower cover plate 21. Thus, the front cover plate 22 can be turned only approximately at 50 degrees in the normal mount state in the indoor unit 100. However, when the thin hinges are used, the front cover plate 22 can be turned at 90 degrees or more. With this, the front side of the electrical component unit 30 can be largely opened, and hence the inspection work by the service engineer can be further easily performed.

Further, there may also be employed such a hinge connecting structure that one of the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 includes a shaft that extends in the right-and-left direction, and another of those plates includes bearings to be fitted to the shaft so as to function as a hinge configured to turn the front cover plate 22. In this case, in order to turn the front cover plate 22 at 90 degrees or more, the shaft and the bearings need to be arranged between the longitudinal side portions of the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 to be connected to each other. Thus, between the lower edge of the front cover plate 22 and the front edge of the lower cover plate 21, gaps are formed at parts where the shaft or the bearings are not arranged. As a result, under the normal mount state of the electrical component cover 20, the electrical component unit 30 may be visible through the gaps. When the shaft and the bearings are arranged on any one of the non-designed surfaces, such gaps are not formed. However, the lower portion of the front cover plate 22 is held in contact with a vicinity of the front end of the lower cover plate 21. As a result, the turning at 90 degrees or more is restricted as in the case of the hooks 21c.

In many of indoor units for general air-conditioning apparatus, components equivalent to the matrix-like top panel 10, the right lateral panel 13, the left lateral panel 14, the coupling plate 15, and the lower cover plate 21 of the indoor unit 100 are formed integrally with each other by molding a resin into a frame member. The frame member covers the heat exchanger 2 from the front side, and an assembly of the frame member and the heat exchanger 2 is fixed to the rear case 11 to form a casing. In such a structure, when the front designed panel 16 is opened, the electrical component unit 30 arranged in front of the front lower heat exchanger 2b is exposed to the front. Further, at the time of inspection work and repair work on the electrical component unit 30, the lower side of the electrical component unit 30 is covered with a part of the frame member (part corresponding to the lower cover plate 21 of the indoor unit 100), and hence such work is difficult to perform. In order to secure the sufficient working space, the entire frame member needs to be removed.

In contrast, in the indoor unit 100 according to this embodiment, the electrical component unit 30 is arranged in front of the lower portion of the heat exchanger 2 located on a front side with respect to the fan 1, and the electrical component cover 20 includes the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 that are respectively configured to cover the lower side and the front side of the electrical component unit 30. Further, the lower cover plate 21 configured to cover the lower side of the electrical component unit 30 is a separate component independent of the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 to form the casing of the indoor unit 100, and is removably mounted to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. In addition, the front cover plate 22 configured to cover the front side of the electrical component unit 30 is also removably mounted to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14.

Thus, even under a state in which the user opens the front designed panel 16 to lightly wipe an inside of the indoor unit 100 or to maintain the filter unit 9, the electrical component unit 30 is not exposed by being hidden with the electrical component cover 20 including the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22, and hence is invisible to or touched by his/her hand of the user at work.

Specifically, even when the user opens the front designed panel 16, the metal surface of the control board case 32, the various electrical components, and the large number of wires connecting those components and the control board 32a are invisible. Thus, excellent design properties that are equal to those under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is closed are maintained. Further, during the cleaning or the maintenance of the filter unit 9, the user is prevented from touching the electrical component unit 30. Thus, such troubles that the wires are carelessly hooked and pulled out or disconnected do not occur, and hence the user can safely perform such work at ease.

Further, even under the state in which the indoor unit 100 is installed to the wall surface in the room, both the front cover plate 22 and the lower cover plate 21 of the electrical component cover 20 can be mounted to and removed from the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 to form the casing of the indoor unit 100. Thus, in a case where the inspection work and the repair work on the electrical component unit 30 are needed, when the service engineer removes the electrical component cover 20 to perform such work, the electrical component unit 30 appears on the foremost side. In addition, no obstacles are present on the front side or the lower side with respect to the electrical component unit 30. Thus, the sufficient work space can be secured, and the work can be easily, safely, and accurately performed.

In addition, the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20 is connected to the lower cover plate 21 through intermediation of the hinge structure. With this, the service engineer is allowed to open the front side of the electrical component unit 30 by turning the front cover plate 22 downward to the front with respect to the fixed lower cover plate 21, and hence can perform visual inspection on the electrical component unit 30 even without removing the electrical component cover 20. Depending on a type of the hinge structure, specifically, when the thin hinge structure is employed, the front cover plate 22 can be turned at 90 degrees or more. When the front cover plate 22 is turned at such a high angle, some other electrical components, such as the electrostatic atomizing device 33, can be inspected, repaired, and replaced.

Further, under the state in which the electrical component cover 20 is normally mounted, the front cover plate 22, which is connected to the lower cover plate 21 through intermediation of the hinge structure, does not allow the lower cover plate 21 to be elastically deformed in the right-and-left direction, that is, in its longitudinal direction. Unless the fastening with the screws 47 and the fixing with the claws with respect to the front cover plate 22 have been cancelled, and the front cover plate 22 has been turned with respect to the lower cover plate 21, even when the lower cover plate 21 is fixed only with the claws, the lower cover plate 21 cannot be removed from the right lateral panel 13 or the left lateral panel 14. In addition, the front cover plate 22 is fastened with the screws 47 to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14. Thus, even when the user carelessly touches or strikes something against the front cover plate 22, the fixing of the front cover plate 22 is not cancelled, and hence the electrical component cover 20 is not inadvertently separated. In this way, the lower cover plate 21 is not inadvertently separated even when being fixed only with claws without screws.

Note that, in this indoor unit 100, the top panel 10, the right lateral panel 13, the left lateral panel 14, and the coupling plate 15 that form the casing of the indoor unit 100 need not necessarily be separated from each other, and may be molded integrally with each other. Also when the electrical component cover 20 including the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 is removably mounted to an integrally molded product formed of those components, the same functions and advantages can be obtained. In other words, irrespective of the structure of the casing of the indoor unit 100, those same functions and advantages can be obtained as long as the electrical component cover 20 is removably mounted to the members (resin members) to form the casing.

Irrespective of whether or not the front designed panel 16 is opened or closed, the designed surface 211 of the lower cover plate 21 of the electrical component cover 20 is constantly directed to the inside of the room. In view of this, the lower cover plate 21 may be regarded as one of exterior design components. Further, at the same time, the lower cover plate 21 connects the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 to each other, and hence may be regarded also as a part of the casing of the indoor unit 100. Similarly, the front cover plate 22 also connects the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14 to each other, and hence may be regarded as a part of the casing of the indoor unit 100.

As described above, the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20 that can be mounted to and removed from the indoor unit 100 are connected to each other through intermediation of the hinge structure to be turnable. However, the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20 need not necessarily be connected to each other, and may be arranged independently of each other. In this case, in order that the electrical component cover 20 is not inadvertently separated, not only the front cover plate 22 but also the lower cover plate 21 needs to be fastened with screws to the right lateral panel 13 and the left lateral panel 14, or other components. As a result, the number of assembly steps is increased. Also with such a structure, the same functions and advantages can be obtained. In addition, the service engineer is allowed to open only the lower side of the electrical component unit 30, and hence there is also an advantage in that inspection work on the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the display device 35 that face the non-designed surface 212 of the lower cover plate 21 is facilitated.

Alternatively, the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 may be formed of a single integrally molded component, specifically, a resin molded component having a substantially L-shape in cross-section. In this case, the front side of the electrical component unit 30 cannot be solely opened, and hence the service engineer needs to remove the electrical component cover 20 even at the time of brief visual inspection. However, the advantages for the user in that excellent design properties are maintained by the electrical component cover 20 even under the state in which the front designed panel 16 is opened, and that there is no risk of touching the electrical component unit 30 can be secured. Further, the advantages for the service engineer in that, by removing the electrical component cover 20, the working space in which inspection and repair are performed can be sufficiently secured, and that the work can be easily, safely, and accurately performed can also be secured.

The lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20, which are formed separately from each other by injection molding of a resin, may be connected to each other through intermediation of the hinge structure to be turnable, or may be formed independently of each other instead of being connected to each other. In this case, the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of such an electrical component cover 20 may be different from each other in plate thickness, and may different from each other in resin material.

Thus, the electrical component cover 20 can be configured such that the lower cover plate 21, which may be deformed to swell downward by its own weight along with the elapse of time, has a plate thickness larger than a plate thickness of the front cover plate 22 that is mounted normally parallel to the vertical direction. In this case, it is preferred that the plate thickness of the lower cover plate 21 be set smaller at parts facing the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the display device 35 than other parts such that the infrared signals to be transmitted to and received by the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the content to be displayed on the display device 35 easily transmit through the lower cover plate 21.

Further, the electrical component cover 20 may be configured such that the lower cover plate 21, which may be deformed to swell downward by its own weight along with the elapse of time, is formed by molding a material that is higher in rigidity than a resin material of the front cover plate 22 that is mounted normally parallel to the vertical direction. In addition, in this case, the plate thickness of the lower cover plate 21 may be set smaller than the plate thickness of the front cover plate 22 such that the infrared signals to be transmitted to and received by the remote control transmitting-and-receiving unit 34 and the content to be displayed on the display device 35 easily transmit through the lower cover plate 21.

Still further, the lower cover plate 21 and the front cover plate 22 of the electrical component cover 20 may be different from each other in color.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

• • 1 fan 2 heat exchanger 3 air inlet 4 air outlet 11 rear case 13 right lateral panel 14 left lateral panel 16 front designed panel 20 electrical component cover 21 lower cover plate 21c hook 22 front cover plate
  • 22 c engaging wall 22d screw through-hole 30 electrical component unit 46 threaded hole 47 screw 100 indoor unit

Claims

1. An indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus, comprising: a fan to generate an air flow flowing from an air inlet formed at a top of the indoor unit to an air outlet formed in a lower portion of the indoor unit;a heat exchanger located on a front side of the indoor unit with respect to the fan and on an upstream side with respect to the fan;an electrical component unit arranged in front of the heat exchanger in a horizontally long posture;a front designed panel located on a foremost side of the indoor unit in an openable and closeable manner; andan electrical component cover removably mounted to members forming a casing of the indoor unit, the electrical component cover including a lower cover plate for covering a lower side of the electrical component unit, anda front cover plate for covering a front side of the electrical component unit,the front cover plate being exposed when the front designed panel is opened.

2. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lower cover plate is exposed in a front lower portion of the indoor unit even under a state in which the front designed panel is closed.

3. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lower cover plate and the front cover plate of the electrical component cover are connected to each other through intermediation of a hinge structure, andwherein the front cover plate is turnable downward to a front with respect to the lower cover plate under a state in which the front designed panel is opened.

4. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the front cover plate is fastened with screws to the members forming the casing of the indoor unit so that the front cover plate is prevented from being turned with respect to the lower cover plate unless the screws fastening the front cover plate are unscrewed, and that the lower cover plate is prevented from being removed from the members forming the casing of the indoor unit unless the front cover plate is turned.

5. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the members forming the casing of the indoor unit includes a right lateral panel and a left lateral panel for closing lateral surfaces of the indoor unit.

6. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lower cover plate and the front cover plate of the electrical component cover are different from each other in material.

7. The indoor unit for an air-conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the lower cover plate and the front cover plate of the electrical component cover are different from each other in plate thickness.