JPH039377B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an air treatment method and apparatus for a constant temperature clean environment chamber that has low operating power costs and high safety.

Reduction exposure equipment used in the IC industry, etc.
Light wave measuring instruments and machine tools that require ultra-precision machining are required to be operated in constant-temperature clean environment chambers that maintain precise temperature control and a high degree of cleanliness. Various devices have been developed to create such a constant-temperature clean environment, but all of the conventional devices require partitioning of a space to maintain a constant-temperature clean environment and maintaining the required temperature within the room. Normally, room air is sucked into the device, supercooled, reheated to the desired temperature using a heater, etc., and then supplied through a filter, which is used to adjust the required temperature of the supplied air. This was done by controlling the heating temperature using a temperature regulator such as a thyristor. Also,
In the past, refrigerators for air cooling usually employed a water cooling system, resulting in large-scale equipment.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a rational air treatment method and device for a constant temperature clean environment room that has low operating power costs and high safety, in place of the conventional air treatment system for a constant temperature clean environment chamber. When blowing out clean air to form a constant temperature clean environment chamber, the temperature of the clean air blown into this environment chamber is detected, and the temperature of the return air and intake outside air is adjusted to the required temperature based on the detected temperature value. It is characterized in that it is cooled to a temperature and then blown into the environmental chamber without being reheated. A suitable device for carrying out the air treatment method for this constant-temperature clean environment room is a heat pump device consisting of an evaporator, condenser, compressor, and throttle valve, as well as return air from the constant-temperature clean environment chamber and a necessary amount of outdoor air. an air processing passage that leads outdoor air to the evaporator and then supplies it to the environmental chamber through a high-performance filter; a heat source air passage that leads outdoor air to the condenser and exhausts it; and the evaporator. An air processing device for a constant temperature clean environment room, comprising: a temperature detector that detects the temperature of the air after passing through; and a controller that controls the rotation speed of the compressor of the heat pump based on the detection signal of the temperature detector. It was developed.

The air treatment method and apparatus for a constant temperature clean environment chamber of the present invention will be specifically explained below based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 schematically shows the principle of the method of the present invention, in which a constant temperature clean environment chamber 1 (hereinafter referred to as the environment chamber 1) has a partition wall 2 between which equipment 3 is housed. The rooms are partitioned according to their size, creating spaces that are isolated from the outside environment. The air in this environmental chamber 1 is supplied to the suction port 4 by the drive of the blower 7.
is introduced into the air treatment device from the cooling coil 5.
After being cooled through the high-performance filter 6
Air is again supplied to the environmental chamber 1 through a HEPA filter, but in the case of the present invention, only the cooling process is performed using the cooling coil 5, and no reheating process is performed as in the conventional case. This cooling process is performed by controlling the capacity of the cooling device to a state necessary and sufficient to cool the supplied air to the required temperature based on a detection signal from a temperature detector 8 that detects the temperature of the supplied air. In the figure, 9 is a temperature controller for this purpose;
Reference numeral 10 indicates a capacity controller for the cooler, and reference numeral 11 indicates a cooling device (the control mode thereof will be described later). In this air treatment, outdoor air is taken into the device through the outside air intake port 12, mixed with return air, and cooled to a required temperature. By introducing this outdoor air into the system, the system is always maintained at a positive pressure and outdoor air is prevented from entering the environmental chamber 1. Excess air flows out of the system through gaps in the partition wall 2 and other places.

FIG. 2 is a statistical diagram of the equipment arrangement for explaining in more detail the operation mode of the equipment when carrying out the air treatment shown in FIG. In the figure, 5 indicates the aforementioned cooling coil, which is the evaporator of the heat pump device. The heat pump device in which the refrigerant circulates is composed of the evaporator 5, the condenser 14, the compressor 15, and the throttle valve (actually consists of the condensing pressure regulating valve 16 and the capillary reach tube 17). The return air 18 from the environmental chamber 1 and the necessary amount of outdoor air 19 are passed through the evaporator 5, and after being cooled to the required temperature, the air is supplied to the environmental chamber 1 from the filter 6 (herein referred to as air treatment). aisle).
On the other hand, outdoor air is introduced into the condenser 14 by an exhaust fan 21 (preferably by natural ventilation according to the configuration shown in FIG. 5 described later), and exhaust gas 22 is discharged outside the system (also in the heat source passage). . In the present invention,
A heat pump type air conditioner with an air heat source like this is used to maintain the temperature of the environmental chamber 1 at a constant temperature, but the treated air is only vented to the evaporator side of the heat pump to cool it. The degree of cooling is automatically controlled based on the supply air temperature detection signal. More specifically, a signal from a temperature detector 8 that detects the temperature of the supply air is sent to a temperature controller 9 (preferably a temperature indication adjustment recorder with an output of 4 to 20㎜).
Based on the instruction signal from the temperature controller 9, a controller 10 (preferably an inverter that controls the rotation speed of the compressor electric motor by frequency and voltage control) adjusts the rotation speed of the compressor 15 and the exhaust fan. The capacity of the heat pump device is controlled by controlling the rotation speed of the heat pump 21 so that the supply air temperature falls within the set value threshold.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show a compact unitized device for implementing this.

As can be seen in the internal equipment layout diagram in Figure 3, this unit has a vertically long rectangular parallelepiped casing (not shown) divided into two parts, upper and lower, and the operating equipment is housed in the lower half, and the HEPA filter 6 is housed in the upper half. Although it is not visible in the figure, when installed, it forms the air passages for the air processing passage and the heat source passage. To explain the equipment arrangement for the lower body, the compressor 15 is housed approximately in the center, and the evaporator 5 (cooling coil) and condenser 14 are installed in front and behind it via a partition wall. Two fan runners 7 and a fan motor 24 for the air treatment passage are arranged on both sides of the compressor 5, and a control panel 25 and an inverter unit 10 are attached to the front of each. And, as seen in Figure 4,
Place the flat plate 26 completely over it. This flat plate 26 is provided with an opening 27 for the air processing passage and an opening 28 for the heat source passage. Although not visible in the figure, the former is
The inside of the upper body casing is partitioned so as to communicate with the HEPA filter 6, and the latter communicates with the upper exhaust port, thereby forming independent air channels.

FIG. 5 shows an embodiment in which the blower is removed from the heat source passage to further save power. That is, in this example, the heat source passage consists of a vertically long box 32 having an outdoor air intake port 30 at the bottom and an exhaust port 31 at the top. This creates natural ventilation without installing a blower. In other words, since the air passing through the condenser 14 installed below has a temperature close to approximately 40°C, the air intake port 30 located below is
A natural upward flow is formed from the exhaust port 31 toward the exhaust port 31. This natural ventilation avoids the inevitable dust generation that occurs when forced ventilation is performed by a blower, which is extremely beneficial in maintaining a clean environment and does not require cooling as in the case of conventional water-cooled refrigerators. Problems caused by water can also be avoided. Note that among the cited numbers in Figure 5, the same numbers as in the previous example indicate the same equipment as in the previous example.

As explained above, the present invention forms a constant temperature clean environment chamber using only the cooling function instead of the conventional cooling and reheating method, and the cooling process is performed based on the detected temperature value of the supply air. This is done by controlling the capacity of the heat pump device (heat pump device), more specifically by controlling the rotation speed of the compressor, eliminating the need for a heater and a heat source for the heater, and minimizing the necessary operation. This device achieves energy-saving operation by operating a cooler under power, and is much more energy-saving and equipment-saving than conventional equipment, with improved safety and reliability, and allows for a highly constant-temperature clean environment. It can be formed economically.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an equipment layout system diagram for explaining the present invention, FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of equipment for carrying out the air treatment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the internal configuration showing an embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which a flat plate is attached to FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is an equipment layout system diagram showing another embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention. 1... Constant temperature clean environment room, 2... Partition wall, 5
...Cooling coil (evaporator), 6...High performance filter, 7...Blower, 8...Temperature detector, 9...
Temperature controller, 10...Controller (inverter unit), 11...Cooler, 12...Outside air intake, 14...Condenser, 15...Compressor, 16
... Condensing pressure regulating valve, 17 ... Capillary reach tube, 21 ... Exhaust fan, 30 ... Outdoor air intake, 31 ... Exhaust port, 32 ... Vertical box.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. When blowing out clean air to form a constant-temperature clean environment chamber, the temperature of the clean air blown into the environment chamber is detected, and the temperature of the return air and the outside air taken in is determined based on the detected temperature value. A method for treating air in a constant-temperature clean environment chamber, characterized in that air is cooled to a required temperature and blown into the environment chamber without being reheated. 2 A heat pump device consisting of an evaporator, condenser, compressor, and throttle valve, return air from a constant temperature clean environment chamber, and the required amount of outdoor air are led to the evaporator and then passed through a high-performance filter to the environment chamber. an air processing passage for supplying air; a heat source air passage for guiding outdoor air to the condenser and exhausting it; a temperature detector for detecting the temperature of the air after passing through the evaporator; An air processing device for a constant temperature clean environment chamber, comprising: a controller that controls the rotation speed of the compressor of the heat pump based on a detection signal. 3. The heat source processing passage consists of a vertically long box with an outdoor air intake at the bottom and an exhaust port at the top. The air processing device for a constant temperature clean environment chamber according to claim 2, which generates ventilation.