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  Variable capacity compressor and starting method thereofUSPTO Application #: 20060193732Title: Variable capacity compressor and starting method thereof Abstract: A variable capacity compressor and a starting method thereof. The variable capacity compressor includes a four-way valve having a suction gas distribution function and an idling chamber high-pressure injection function, thereby achieving a reduced manufacturing cost and an improved reliability incurred by the use of a validated component. Further, a boosting algorithm is applicable to obtain a driving source of the four-way valve in an initial parallel pressure state. In the variable capacity compressor comprising a plurality of compression chambers having different capacities and a four-way valve to distribute a suction refrigerant gas into the plurality of compression chambers, a starting method thereof comprises determining whether the variable capacity compressor is in an initial starting mode, and controlling the four-way valve to generate a pressure difference among the plurality of compression chambers to move a piston of the four-way valve from an initial parallel pressure state if the variable capacity compressor is determined to be in the initial starting mode. (end of abstract)
Agent: Stanzione & Kim, LLP - Washington, DC, US Inventors: Sung Hea Cho, Seung Kap Lee, Chun Mo Sung USPTO Applicaton #: 20060193732 - Class: 417212000 (USPTO) Related Patent Categories: Pumps, Condition Responsive Control Of Drive Transmission Or Pump Displacement The Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060193732. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2005-15950, filed on Feb. 25, 2005 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The present general inventive concept relates to a variable capacity compressor, and more particularly, to a variable capacity compressor which includes a four-way valve having a suction gas distribution function and a high-pressure injection function, and is designed to gain a driving source of the four-way valve in an initial parallel pressure state. The present general inventive concept further relates to a starting method of the variable capacity compressor. [0004] 2. Description of the Related Art [0005] Cooling systems designed to cool an enclosed surrounding space using a refrigeration cycle, such as air conditioners and refrigerators, include a compressor to compress a refrigerant that circulates in a closed circuit of the refrigeration cycle. A cooling capability of the cooling systems is determined depending on a compression capacity of the compressor. [0006] Variable capacity compressors that are capable of varying the compression capacity used to compress the refrigerant have been used to perform optimum cooling consistent with a need to conserve energy by varying the cooling ability thereof. [0007] An example of the variable capacity compressors is disclosed in Korean Patent Application No. 2002-61462 filed by the applicant of the present general inventive concept. The disclosed variable capacity compressor is designed such that only one of two compression chambers having different compression capacities selectively performs a compression operation. [0008] The variable capacity compressor of the above Korean patent application includes an eccentric device that causes a roller, disposed in an associated one of the compression chambers, to be eccentrically rotated or to be released from its eccentrically rotated position depending on a change of a rotational direction of a rotary shaft in the associated compression chamber, thereby selectively performing a compression or compression-removal operation. The eccentric device includes two eccentric cams provided at an outer circumference of the rotary shaft in the respective compression chambers, two eccentric bushes rotatably coupled, respectively, to outer circumferences of the two eccentric cams, two rollers rotatably coupled, respectively, to outer circumferences of the two eccentric bushes, and a latch pin to latch one of the two eccentric bushes to its eccentric position and the other one to its non-eccentric position during rotation of the rotary shaft. The eccentric device further includes radially reciprocatable vanes disposed in the compression chambers, respectively, to divide an interior of the respective compression chambers into a suction space and a discharge space. [0009] With the variable capacity compressor configured as described above, one of the compression chambers having different capacities performs an idling operation when the other compression chamber performs a compression operation according to operation of the eccentric device, thereby enabling a variable capacity operation of the compressor as a result of changing a rotational direction of the rotary shaft. [0010] The above described variable capacity compressor is easy to install in an air conditioner because of its simplified structure having a suction gas distribution device that is directly attached to the compressor. However, the design and manufacture of the separate distribution device results in the use of an un-validated component, thereby deteriorating a reliability of the compressor. [0011] Further, the roller of the compression chamber having no source of a refrigerant, i.e., an idling compression chamber, continuously rotates along with the rotary shaft, thereby generating a negative pressure in the idling compression chamber due to a pressure difference between the idling compression chamber and an interior of a hermetic casing of the compressor. The negative pressure hinders a rotation of the rotary shaft, resulting in a deterioration in an operational efficiency of the compressor due to power loss. [0012] In order to solve the above problem, it is necessary to provide a separate control device to inject a high-pressure refrigerant to an idling portion of the compressor to equalize the interior pressure and a discharge pressure of the idling compression chamber. However, this increases manufacturing costs. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0013] The present general inventive concept provides a variable capacity compressor including a four-way valve having a suction gas distribution function and an idling chamber high-pressure injection function, thereby achieving a low manufacturing cost and a high reliability due to the use of a validated component. [0014] The present general inventive concept also provides a starting method of a variable capacity compressor that performs a boosting algorithm to obtain a driving source of a four-way valve in an initial parallel pressure state to produce a pressure difference to move a piston of the four-way valve. [0015] Additional aspects and/or advantages of the general inventive concept will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the general inventive concept. [0016] The foregoing and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept are achieved by providing a variable capacity compressor comprising a plurality of compression chambers having different capacities, a passage switching device to supply a refrigerant gas into one of the plurality of compression chambers to perform a compression operation and to supply a compressed high-pressure refrigerant into a non-operating one of the plurality of compression chambers. [0017] The passage switching device may be a four-way valve to distribute a gas into an operating compression chamber and to inject the compressed high-pressure refrigerant into the non-operating compression chamber. [0018] The four-way valve may be connected to a bypass pipe branched from an outlet pipe through which the compressed high-pressure refrigerant is discharged, an inlet pipe through which a suction refrigerant gas to be compressed is supplied, and a plurality of suction pipes through which the suction refrigerant gas from the inlet pipe is delivered to the plurality of compression chambers, and the four way valve selectively connects one of the suction pipes with the inlet pipe and another one of the suction pipes with the bypass pipe. [0019] The compressor may further comprise a control unit to control a boosting operation to move a piston of the four-way valve into an initial parallel pressure state. [0020] The foregoing and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept are also achieved by providing a starting method of a variable capacity compressor including a plurality of compression chambers having different capacities and a four-way valve to selectively distribute a refrigerant gas into the plurality of compression chambers, the method comprising determining whether the variable capacity compressor is in an initial starting mode, and controlling the four-way valve to generate a pressure difference to move a piston of the four-way valve in an initial parallel pressure state if the variable capacity compressor is determined to be in the initial starting mode. [0021] The controlling of the four-way valve to generate the pressure difference may comprise operating one or more of the plurality of compression chambers and successively operating one or more remaining compression chambers after a lapse of a predetermined waiting time. Continue reading... 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