The present invention relates to a variable displacement swash-plate compressor.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 52-131204 discloses a variable displacement swash-plate compressor (hereinafter referred to as a compressor). This type of compressor includes a housing, a drive shaft, a swash plate, a link mechanism, single-headed pistons, a link mechanism, and a control mechanism.
The housing has a swash plate chamber, cylinder bores, and a discharge chamber. The drive shaft is rotationally supported by the housing. The swash plate is accommodated in the swash plate chamber to be rotational with the drive shaft. The link mechanism is located between the drive shaft and the swash plate. The link mechanism allows the inclination angle of the swash plate to be changed. The inclination angle is the angle of the swash plate in relation to a direction perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft. The pistons are reciprocally accommodated in the cylinder bores. The conversion mechanism uses rotation of the swash plate to reciprocate the pistons in the cylinder bores by a stroke corresponding to the inclination angle. The inclination angle of the swash plate is changed by an actuator. The actuator is controlled by the control mechanism.
More specifically, the link mechanism includes a lug member, a hinge ball, and a link. The lug member is located in the swash plate chamber and is fixed to the drive shaft. The hinge ball is fitted about the drive shaft to be arranged between the swash plate and the drive shaft. The hinge ball includes a spherical portion, which slidably contacts the swash plate, and a receiving portion, which is located in the vicinity of the actuator. The receiving portion is an annular and flat surface arranged to be coaxial with the drive shaft. The link is provided between the lug member and the swash plate. The swash plate is pivotally connected to the lug member via the link.
The actuator includes the lug member, a movable body, and a control pressure chamber. The movable body has a cylindrical shape that is coaxial with and is fitted about the drive shaft. The movable body has an acting portion at a position in the vicinity of the hinge ball. The acting portion is an annular and flat surface coaxial with the drive shaft. The acting portion and the receiving portion contact each other in an area about the drive shaft. The movable body is thus engaged with the swash plate via the hinge ball. The control pressure chamber is defined by the lug member and the movable body. The pressure in the control pressure chamber moves the movable body along the axis of the drive shaft. The control mechanism uses a pressure regulation valve to regulate connection between the discharge chamber and the control pressure chamber, thereby increasing or decreasing the pressure in the control pressure chamber.
In this type of compressor, when the control mechanism controls and increases the pressure in the control pressure chamber, the movable body is moved along the axis so that the acting portion pushes the receiving portion along the axis. This moves the hinge ball along the axis so that the swash plate slides on the hinge ball in a direction for reducing the inclination angle. In contrast, when the control mechanism controls and decreases the pressure in the control pressure chamber, the movable body and the hinge ball are moved in a direction opposite to the above mentioned direction, so that the swash plate slides on the hinge ball in a direction for increasing the inclination angle. In this manner, by moving the movable body along the axis, the inclination angle of the swash plate is changed and the displacement per rotation of the drive shaft is increased or decreased.
In this type of compressor, the swash plate has a top dead center associated part for positioning each piston at the top dead center and a bottom dead center associated part for positioning each piston at the bottom dead center. The inclination angle of the swash plate is changed by pivoting the swash plate about the top dead center associated part without changing the top clearance of the pistons. The position at which the acting portion and the receiving portion contact each other has a structure described below. For example, the acting portion and the receiving portion contact each other in an area about the drive shaft as described above. In another structure, the acting portion and the receiving portion contact each other at a position that is closer to the top dead center associated part than the drive shaft in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft. In this case, however, the contact position at which the acting portion and the receiving portion contact each other is close to the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate. The contact position is also close to the top dead center associated part, at which the compression reaction force applied to the swash plate, for example, by the pistons is great. As a result, the load acting on the movable body is increased when the inclination angle is decreased. In this case, the inclination angle cannot be quickly changed in response to changes in the driving state, for example, of the vehicle, and high controllability cannot be achieved.
Thus, to increase the thrust of the movable body to act against such load, the pressure receiving area of the movable body may be increased. However, an increased pressure receiving area of the movable body increases the diameter of the actuator, which prevents the entire device from being reduced in size.
The contact position of the acting portion and the receiving portion may be changed to a position between the drive shaft and the bottom dead center associated part in the direction perpendicular to the axis of the drive shaft. In this case, the contact position is distant from the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate, and the movable body receives little influence from the compression reaction force. As a result, the load acting on the movable body is decreased when the inclination angle is decreased. Thus, the inclination angle can be quickly changed in response to changes in the driving state, for example, of a vehicle, and high controllability is achieved. This, however, increases the stroke of the movable body when the inclination angle is changed. As a result, the axial dimension of the actuator is increased, hindering the entire device from being reduced in size.
An objective of the present invention is to provide a variable displacement swash-plate compressor that achieves high controllability and is reduced in size.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, and in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a variable displacement swash-plate compressor is provided that includes a housing, in which a swash plate chamber and a cylinder bore are defined, a drive shaft rotationally supported by the housing, a swash plate rotational in the swash plate chamber by rotation of the drive shaft, a link mechanism, a piston, a conversion mechanism, an actuator, and a control mechanism. The link mechanism is arranged between the drive shaft and the swash plate. The link mechanism allows change of an inclination angle of the swash plate with respect to a direction perpendicular to an axis of the drive shaft. The piston is reciprocally received in the cylinder bore. The conversion mechanism causes the piston to reciprocate in the cylinder bore by a stroke corresponding to the inclination angle of the swash plate through rotation of the swash plate. The actuator is configured to change the inclination angle of the swash plate. The control mechanism controls the actuator. The link mechanism includes a lug member, which is located in the swash plate chamber and is fixed to the drive shaft, and a transmitting member, which transmits rotation of the lug member to the swash plate. The actuator includes the lug member, a movable body, and a control pressure chamber. The movable body is rotational integrally with the swash plate. The movable body is configured to change the inclination angle of the swash plate by moving along the axis of the drive shaft. The control pressure chamber is defined by the lug member and the movable body. The movable body is moved by changing a pressure in the control pressure chamber. The movable body has a primary acting portion and a secondary acting portion, which are configured to push the swash plate with the pressure in the control pressure chamber. The swash plate has a primary receiving portion and a secondary receiving portion, which are pushed by the primary acting portion and the secondary acting portion. A top dead center associated part for positioning the piston at a top dead center and a bottom dead center associated part for positioning the piston at the bottom dead center are defined on the swash plate. The primary acting portion is configured to contact the primary receiving portion to push the swash plate when the inclination angle of the swash plate is maximized. The secondary acting portion is configured to contact the secondary receiving portion to push the swash plate when the inclination angle of the swash plate is minimized. The secondary acting portion is located between the primary acting portion and the bottom dead center associated part.
One embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. The compressor of the embodiment is a variable displacement swash-plate compressor with single-headed pistons. This compressor is installed in a vehicle and each included in the refrigeration circuit in the air conditioner of the vehicle.
As shown in
As shown in
The first housing member 17 has a front wall 17a, which extends radially, and a circumferential wall 17b, which is integrated with the front wall 17a and extends rearward. A part of the first housing member 17 that is constituted by the front wall 17a and the circumferential wall 17b has a cylindrical shape with a closed end. The front wall 17a and the circumferential wall 17b define a swash plate chamber 25 in the first housing member 17.
The front wall 17a has a boss 17c, which projects forward. The boss 17c accommodates a shaft sealing device 27. The boss 17c has a first shaft hole 17d, which extends in the front-rear direction. The first shaft hole 17d accommodates a first plain bearing 29a.
The circumferential wall 17b has an inlet 250, which communicates with the swash plate chamber 25. An evaporator 103 is connected to the inlet 250 via a pipe 203. This allows low-pressure refrigerant gas delivered by the evaporator 103 to flow into the swash plate chamber 25 via the inlet 250. Thus, the pressure in the swash plate chamber 25 is lower than that in a discharge chamber 35, which will be discussed below.
A part of the control mechanism 15 is arranged in the second housing member 19. The second housing member 19 has a first pressure regulation section 31a, a suction chamber 33, the discharge chamber 35, a discharge passage 36, and an outlet 360. The first pressure regulation section 31a is located in the central part of the second housing member 19. The discharge chamber 35 has an annular shape and is located in a radially outer part of the rear housing member 19. The suction chamber 33 has an annular shape and is located between the first pressure regulation section 31a and the discharge chamber 35 in the second housing member 19.
The discharge chamber 35 communicates with the outlet 360 via the discharge passage 36. A condenser 101 is connected to the outlet 360 via a pipe 201. A check valve 38 is provided in the discharge passage 36. The check valve 38 is switchable between an open state and a closed state. Specifically, the check valve 38 is switched to the open state when the differential pressure of the discharge chamber 35 relative to the condenser 101 is greater than or equal to a predetermined value. In contrast, the check valve 38 is switched to the closed state when the differential pressure of the discharge chamber 35 relative to the condenser 101 is less than the predetermined value. When the check valve 38 is switched to the open state, the refrigerant gas in the discharge chamber 35 flows to the condenser 101 via the discharge passage 36, the outlet 360, and the pipe 201. When the check valve 38 is switched to the closed state, refrigerant gas is prevented from flowing back from the condenser 101 to the discharge chamber 35.
The cylinder block 21 includes cylinder bores 21a, the number of which is the same as that of the pistons 9. The cylinder bores 21a are arranged at equal angular intervals in the circumferential direction. The front end of the each cylinder bore 21a communicates with the swash plate chamber 25. The cylinder block 21 also has retainer grooves 21b, which limit the maximum opening degree of suction reed valves 41a, which will be discussed below.
The cylinder block 21 further has a second shaft hole 21c, which communicates with the swash plate chamber 25 and extends in the front-rear direction of the compressor. The second shaft hole 21c accommodates a second plain bearing 29b. The first plain bearing 29a and the second plain bearing 29b may be replaced by rolling-element bearings.
The cylinder block 21 further has a spring chamber 21d. The spring chamber 21d is located between the swash plate chamber 25 and the second shaft hole 21c. The spring chamber 21d accommodates a restoration spring 37. The restoration spring 37 urges the swash plate 5 forward when the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is minimized. The cylinder block 21 also includes a suction passage 39, which communicates with the swash plate chamber 25.
The valve assembly plate 23 is located between the second housing member 19 and the cylinder block 21. The valve assembly plate 23 includes a valve base plate 40, a suction valve plate 41, a discharge valve plate 43, and a retainer plate 45.
The valve base plate 40, the discharge valve plate 43, and the retainer plate 45 include suction ports 40a, the number of which is equal to that of the cylinder bores 21a. The valve base plate 40 and the suction valve plate 41 include discharge ports 40b, the number of which is equal to that of the cylinder bores 21a. The cylinder bores 21a communicate with the suction chamber 33 through the suction ports 40a and communicate with the discharge chamber 35 through the discharge ports 40b. Furthermore, the valve base plate 40, the suction valve plate 41, the discharge valve plate 43, and the retainer plate 45 include a first communication hole 40c and a second communication hole 40d. The first communication hole 40c connects the suction chamber 33 to the suction passage 39. This connects the swash plate chamber 25 to the suction chamber 33.
The suction valve plate 41 is provided on the front surface of the valve base plate 40. The suction valve plate 41 includes suction reed valves 41a, which are allowed to selectively open and close the suction ports 40a by elastic deformation. The discharge valve plate 43 is located on the rear surface of the valve base plate 40. The discharge valve plate 43 includes discharge reed valves 43a, which are allowed to selectively open and close the discharge ports 40b by elastic deformation. The retainer plate 45 is provided on the rear surface of the discharge valve plate 43. The retainer plate 45 limits the maximum opening degree of the discharge reed valves 43a.
The drive shaft 3 has a cylindrical outer circumferential surface 30. The drive shaft 3 is inserted in the boss 17c toward the rear of the housing 1. The front end of the drive shaft 3 is supported by the shaft sealing device 27 in the boss 17c and is supported by the first plain bearing 29a in the first shaft hole 17d. The rear end of the drive shaft 3 is supported by the second plain bearing 29b in the second shaft hole 21c. In this manner, the drive shaft 3 is supported by the housing 1 to be rotational about the axis O. A second pressure regulation section 31b is defined in the second shaft hole 21c in a part rearward of the rear end of the drive shaft 3. The second pressure regulation section 31b communicates with the first pressure regulation section 31a through the second communication hole 40d. The first and second pressure regulation sections 31a, 31b constitute a pressure regulation chamber 31.
O-rings 49a, 49b are provided on the rear end of the drive shaft 3. The O-rings 49a, 49b are located between the drive shaft 3 and the circumferential wall of the second shaft hole 21c to seal off the swash plate chamber 25 and the pressure regulation chamber 31 from each other.
The link mechanism 7, the swash plate 5, and the actuator 13 are mounted to the drive shaft 3. The link mechanism 7 includes first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f provided on the swash plate 5 shown in
As shown in
As viewed in
The swash plate main portion 50 includes a through-hole 5d. The drive shaft 3 is inserted in the through-hole 5d. Two flat guide surfaces 52a, 52b are provided in the through-hole 5d. The guide surfaces 52a, 52b contact the outer circumferential surface 30 of the drive shaft 3, which is inserted in the through-hole 5d.
The swash plate main portion 50 has, on the front surface 5a, a first-side primary receiving portion 60a and a second-side primary receiving portion 60b. The first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b are each formed to be flat. The first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b are located between the weight 5c and the first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f. The first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b are located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D and have symmetrical shapes with respect to the bottom dead center plane D.
The weight 5c is located on the front surface 5a of the swash plate main portion 50 and is located between the drive shaft axis O and the bottom dead center associated part U. The weight 5c has a substantially semi-circular cylindrical shape. As shown in
As shown in
The weight 5c has a first-side recess 62a, which is continuous with the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a, and a second-side recess 62b, which is continuous with the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b. As shown in
The first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f are located on the front surface 5a of the swash plate main portion 50 and between the axis O of the drive shaft 3 and the top dead center associated part T. The first swash plate arm 5e and the second swash plate arm 5f are arranged on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D. As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
The lug plate 51 has first and second guide surfaces 57a, 57b between the first and second lug arms 53a, 53b. The first guide surface 57a and the second guide surface 57b are also located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D. As shown in
The first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f are inserted between the first and second lug arms 53a, 53b to mount the swash plate 5 to the drive shaft 3. The lug plate 51 and the swash plate 5 are thus coupled to each other with the first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f located between the first and second lug arms 53a, 53b. When rotation of the lug plate 51 is transmitted from the first and second lug arms 53a, 53b to the first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f, the swash plate 5 rotates with the lug plate 51 in the swash plate chamber 25.
With the first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f located between the first and second lug arms 53a, 53b, the distal end of the first swash plate arm 5e contacts the first guide surface 57a, and the distal end of the second swash plate arm 5f contacts the second guide surface 57b. The first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f slide on the first and second guide surfaces 57a, 57b, respectively. Accordingly, the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is allowed to change from the maximum inclination angle shown in
A first inclination range and a second inclination range are defined between the maximum inclination angle and the minimum inclination angle. The first inclination range is a range from an inclination angle close to the maximum inclination angle to the maximum inclination angle and includes the maximum inclination angle. On the other hand, the second inclination range is a range from the maximum inclination angle to the first inclination range and includes the minimum inclination angle. Specifically, the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
The second cylindrical portion 132 is located at a position on the movable body main portion 130 that is in the vicinity of the lug plate 51, that is, at the front end of the movable body 13a. The outer diameter of the second cylindrical portion 132 is greater than that of the first cylindrical portion 131 and is greatest in the movable body main portion 130. The second cylindrical portion 132 has a flat front end face 132a and a flat rear end face 132b. With the drive shaft 3 inserted in the movable body 13a, the front end face 132a and the rear end face 132b of the movable body 13a are perpendicular to the axis O of the drive shaft 3. The second cylindrical portion 132 has a ring groove 132c in the outer circumferential surface. An O-ring 49d is fitted in the ring groove 132c.
The coupling portion 133 is formed to have a diameter that is gradually increased from the first cylindrical portion 131 toward the second cylindrical portion 132. The coupling portion 133 couples the first cylindrical portion 131 to the rear end face 132b of the second cylindrical portion 132.
As shown in
The first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are formed on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D to extend over the rear end face 132b of the second cylindrical portion 132 and the coupling portion 133. The first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b have symmetrical shapes with respect to the bottom dead center plane D. As shown in
The first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b are closer to the top dead center associated part T of the swash plate main portion 50 than the axis O of the drive shaft 3. On the other hand, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are closer to the bottom dead center associated part U of the swash plate main portion 50 than the axis O of the drive shaft 3. Accordingly, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are closer to the bottom dead center associated part U than the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b in the first direction A1.
The movable body 13a is located between the lug plate 51 and the swash plate 5 and moves along the axis O of the drive shaft 3. This causes the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b to contact the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b shown in
As shown in
As shown in
The drive shaft 3 has an axial passage 3a and a radial passage 3b. The axial passage 3a extends from the rear end of the drive shaft 3 toward the front end along the drive shaft axis O. The radial passage 3b extends in a radial direction from the front end of the axial passage 3a and opens in the outer circumferential surface 30 of the drive shaft 3. As shown in
As shown in
The pistons 9 are single-headed pistons each having a head 90 only at the rear end. Each piston 9 is accommodated in the corresponding one of the cylinder bores 21a and is allowed to reciprocate in the cylinder bore 21a. The head 90 of each piston 9 and the valve assembly plate 23 define a compression chamber 57 in the corresponding cylinder bore 21a.
Each piston 9 has an engaging portion 9a. Each engaging portion 9a accommodates a pair of hemispherical shoes 11a, 11b. The shoes 11a, 11b correspond to a conversion mechanism of the present invention. Each shoe 11a slides on the front surface 5a of the swash plate main portion 50. In contrast, each shoe 11b slides on the rear surface 5b of the swash plate main portion 50. In this manner, the swash plate main portion 50 causes the shoes 11a, 11b to move along the front surface 5a and the rear surface 5b. Accordingly, the shoes 11a, 11b convert rotation of the swash plate 5 into reciprocation of the pistons 9, and the pistons 9 reciprocate in the cylinder bores 21a by a stroke corresponding to the inclination angle of the swash plate 5. Instead of providing the shoes 11a, 11b, a wobble plate type conversion mechanism may be employed, in which a wobble plate is provided on the rear surface 5b of the swash plate main portion 50 via a thrust bearing, and the wobble plate and the pistons 9 are connected to each other with connecting rods.
As shown in
The low-pressure passage 15a is connected to the pressure regulation chamber 31 and the suction chamber 33. The low-pressure passage 15a, the axial passage 3a, and the radial passage 3b connect the control pressure chamber 13b, the pressure regulation chamber 31, and the suction chamber 33 to one another. The high-pressure passage 15b is connected to the pressure regulation chamber 31 and the discharge chamber 35. The high-pressure passage 15b, the axial passage 3a, and the radial passage 3b connect the control pressure chamber 13b, the pressure regulation chamber 31, and the discharge chamber 35 to one another.
The control valve 15c is arranged in the low-pressure passage 15a. The low-pressure control valve 15c is configured to adjust the opening degree of the low-pressure passage 15a based on the pressure in the suction chamber 33. The high-pressure passage 15b also has the orifice 15d.
The inlet 250 shown in
When the drive shaft 3 rotates to rotate the swash plate 5, the pistons 9 are reciprocated in the cylinder bores 21a. Accordingly, the volume of each compression chamber 57 changes in accordance with the stroke of the pistons 9. Thus, refrigerant gas is drawn into the swash plate chamber 25 from the evaporator 103 via the inlet 250 and then into the compression chambers 57 from the suction passage 39 via the suction chamber 33. The refrigerant gas is then compressed in each compression chamber 57. The refrigerant that is compressed in the compression chambers 57 is discharged to the discharge chamber 35 and is delivered to the condenser 101 through the outlet 360.
The actuator 13 changes the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 to increase or decrease the stroke of the pistons 9, thereby varying the displacement.
When changing the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 from the minimum inclination angle shown in
The compression reaction force acting on the swash plate 5 and the urging force of the restoration spring 37 cause the first and second swash plate arms 5e, 5f to slide on the first and second guide surfaces 57a, 57b, respectively, to move away from the axis O of the drive shaft 3.
The swash plate 5 thus increases the inclination angle by pivoting to bring the bottom dead center associated part U closer to the lug plate 51, while substantially maintaining the position of the top dead center associated part T. As a result, the stroke of the pistons 9 is increased, so that the displacement of the compressor per rotation of the drive shaft 3 is increased. When the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is maximized as shown in
When the displacement is large as described above, the pressure in the discharge chamber 35 is high, and the differential pressure of the discharge chamber 35 relative to the condenser 101 becomes greater than or equal to the predetermined value. In this case, since the check valve 38 shown in
To reduce the displacement, the control valve 15c of the control mechanism 15 shown in
When the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is within the first inclination range, which includes the maximum inclination angle as shown in
When the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b is increased, the movable body 13a, which is at the deepest position in the cylinder chamber 51a as shown in
The swash plate 5 thus decreases the inclination angle by pivoting to moving the bottom dead center associated part U away from the lug plate 51, while substantially maintaining the position of the top dead center associated part T as shown in
When the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b is further increased, and the movable body 13a further pushes the swash plate 5 via the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b, the swash plate 5 is displaced to the inclination angle that corresponds to the boundary between the first inclination range and the second inclination range as shown in
When the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 reaches the boundary between the first inclination range and the second inclination range, the first-side primary acting portion 70a contacts the first-side primary receiving portion 60a, and the first-side secondary acting portion 71a contacts the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a. Likewise, the second-side primary acting portion 70b shown in
Also, when the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is reduced to the inclination angle that corresponds to the boundary between the first inclination range and the second inclination range, so that the displacement of the compressor is reduced, the pressure in the discharge chamber 35 is lowered, and the differential pressure of the discharge chamber 35 relative to the condenser 101 falls below the predetermined value. This switches the check valve 38 shown in
When the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b is further increased, the movable body 13a is moved further toward the swash plate 5 along the axis O in the cylinder chamber 51a as shown in
When the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is within the second inclination range, which includes the minimum inclination angle as shown in
When the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is within the second inclination range, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71a push the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61a rearward along the axis O, respectively. This changes the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 to the minimum inclination angle as shown in
As described above, in the first inclination range, the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b of the movable body 13a contact the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60h of the swash plate main portion 50, respectively. Also, in the second inclination range, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b of the weight 5c, respectively.
The first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are located between the bottom dead center associated part U and the first-side and second-side primary acting portions 70a, 70b in the first direction A1. The positions at which the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b respectively contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b are distant from the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate 5 and distant from the top dead center associated part T, at which the compression reaction force is great. On the other hand, the positions at which the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b respectively contact the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b are closer to the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate 5 and closer to the top dead center associated part T, at which the compression reaction force is great, than the positions at which the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b respectively contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b.
The first inclination range includes the maximum inclination angle and is close to the maximum inclination angle in the range of change of the inclination angle of the swash plate 5. The closer to the maximum inclination angle the swash plate 5 is, the greater the displacement becomes. Accordingly, it becomes easier to increase the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b, and as a result, it becomes easier to increase the thrust of the movable body 13a. The second inclination range includes the minimum inclination angle and is close to the minimum inclination angle in the range of change of the inclination angle of the swash plate 5. The closer to the minimum inclination angle the swash plate 5 is, the smaller the displacement becomes. Accordingly, it becomes more difficult to increase the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b, and as a result, it becomes more difficult to increase the thrust of the movable body 13a.
That is, in the first inclination range, in which it is easy to increase the thrust of the movable body 13a, the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b respectively contact the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b at positions close to the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate 5 and at positions close to the top dead center associated part T, at which the compression reaction force is great, so that the movable body 13a pushes the swash plate 5. Thus, even if the load acting on the movable body 13a is increased when the inclination angle is reduced, an increase in the thrust of the movable body 13a allows the inclination angle to be quickly changed in response to changes in the driving state of the vehicle, so that a high controllability is achieved. In this case, the stroke of the movable body 13a when changing the inclination angle is reduced. This allows the axial dimension of the actuator 13 to be reduced.
This operation will be described based on a comparison example. As shown in
In the compressor of the comparison example, when the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is changed from the maximum inclination angle to the minimum inclination angle, the movable body 13a always pushes the swash plate 5 via the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b. Thus, in the compressor of the comparison example, the positions at which the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b contact the weight 5c are distant from the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate 5, and the movable body 13a is likely to be influenced by the compression reaction force. In contrast, when the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is changed from the maximum inclination angle to the minimum inclination angle as shown in
In the compressor of the comparison example, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b respectively contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b, so that the movable body 13a pushes the swash plate 5.
In the first cylindrical portion 131 of the movable body 13a, the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b are located between the axis O of the drive shaft 3 and the top dead center associated part T. This sufficiently reduces the stroke of the movable body 13a required for changing the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 in the first inclination range.
Thus, as shown in
Also, in the second inclination range, in which it is difficult to increase the thrust of the movable body 13a, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b respectively contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b to push the swash plate 5 at positions distant from the center of moment of the load acting on the swash plate 5 and at positions distant from the top dead center associated part T, at which the compression reaction force is great.
In the movable body 13a, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are located between the axis O and the bottom dead center associated part U of the swash plate main portion 50. Thus, when changing the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 within the second inclination range, the influence of the load such as the compression reaction force acting on the movable body 13a is further effectively reduced.
Thus, even if the load acting on the movable body 13a is decreased when the inclination angle is reduced, the inclination angle can be quickly changed in response to changes in the driving state of the vehicle without increasing the thrust of the movable body 13a, so that a high controllability is achieved. In this case, the pressure receiving area of the movable body 13a does not need to be increased. Thus, the size of the movable body 13a and that of the actuator 13 can be reduced.
Particularly, when the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is changed to the inclination angle that corresponds to the boundary between the first inclination range and the second inclination range, the contact state is switched between the first contact state and the second contact state. Thus, the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b, the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b, and the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b do not interfere with each other. Therefore, the above described operations can be effectively performed.
Accordingly, the compressor of the embodiment achieves high controllability while reducing the size.
The check valve 38 is switched between the open state and the closed state at the boundary between the second inclination range and the first inclination range. Thus, even if the drive shaft 3 is rotating, the check valve 38 in the closed state prevents the refrigerant gas from flowing back from the condenser 101 to the discharge chamber 35 as long as the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is in the second inclination range, which includes the minimum inclination angle, and the check valve 38 is switched to the OFF state. On the other hand, the check valve 38 in the open state allows refrigerant gas to flow from the discharge chamber 35 to the condenser 101 as long as the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 is in the first inclination range, which includes the maximum inclination angle, and the check valve 38 is switched to the ON state. In this manner, a clutchless compressor is obtained, in which the drive shaft 3 is not disconnected from the power source by an electromagnetic clutch.
The movable body 13a has the first-side primary acting portion 70a, the second-side primary acting portion 70b, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a, and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b, but has no other acting portions. The movable body 13a is thus easy to manufacture.
The first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b are located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D to form a pair, and the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D to form a pair. In accordance with these, the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b are located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D to form pair, and the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b are located on opposite sides of the bottom dead center plane D to form a pair.
With this configuration, the swash plate 5 is unlikely to be inclined in direction other than inclination angle changing directions eve if the movable body 13a is pushed in the above described manners. This allows the movable body 13a to properly change the inclination angle of the swash plate 5.
Since the swash plate main portion 50 of the swash plate 5 has the weight 5c, the balance of weight of the swash plate 5 is properly adjusted during rotation, allowing the swash plate 5 to rotate properly. Since the weight 5c has the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b are allowed to properly contact the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b, while simplifying the shape of the swash plate 5.
Although the invention has been described with reference to the embodiment, the invention is not limited to the embodiment but may be modified within the scope of the invention.
For example, in the range in change the inclination angle of the swash plate 5 from the maximum inclination angle to the minimum inclination angle, a range may be defined in which the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b respectively push the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b, and the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b respectively push the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b.
Also, the first cylindrical portion 131 may be formed without the first-side primary acting portion 70a or the second-side primary acting portion 70b. Instead, the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b may have projecting shapes that are contactable with the rear end face 131a of the first cylindrical portion 131. That is, the rear end face 131a of the first cylindrical portion 131 may function as a primary acting portion. The movable body 13a may be formed without the first-side secondary acting portion 71a or the second-side secondary acting portion 71b. Instead may have an annular secondary acting portion that is contactable with the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b. These configurations achieve the same advantages as the compressor of the above illustrated embodiment. With this configuration, the movable body 13a does not need to have the rotation stopper 134, which simplifies the manufacture of the movable body 13a.
Further, in addition to the first-side primary acting portion 70a, the second-side primary acting portion 70b, the first-side secondary acting portion 71a, and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b, the movable body 13a may have an additional acting portion, and the swash plate 5 may have receiving portions that corresponds to the above acting portions.
The movable body 13a may have only one of the first-side primary acting portion 70a and the second-side primary acting portion 70b and one of the first-side secondary acting portion 71a and the second-side secondary acting portion 71b. In this case, the swash plate 5 is only required to have one of the first-side primary receiving portion 60a and the second-side primary receiving portion 60b and one of the first-side secondary receiving portion 61a and the second-side secondary receiving portion 61b. This facilitates the manufacture of the movable body 13a and the swash plate 5.
Further, the control valve 15c may be provided in the high-pressure passage 15b of the control mechanism 15, and the orifice 15d may be provided in the low-pressure passage 15a. In this case, the control valve 15c is allowed to adjust the flow rate of high-pressure refrigerant flowing through the high-pressure passage 15b. This allows the high-pressure in the discharge chamber 35 to promptly increase the pressure in the control pressure chamber 13b and to promptly reduce the displacement. Also, the control valve 15c may be replaced by a three-way valve connected to the low-pressure passage 15a and the high-pressure passage 15b. In this case, the opening degree of the three-way valve is adjusted to regulate the flow rate of refrigerant flowing through the low-pressure passage 15a and the high-pressure passage 15b.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2015-027707 | Feb 2015 | JP | national |