Controller Mounting Bracket for Heating And/Or Cooling Appliances

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to and benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 63/737,062 filed Dec. 20, 2024, which is herein incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is generally in the field of heating and/or cooling appliances.

BACKGROUND

Heating and/or cooling appliances are systems that may be used, for example, to heat and/or cool a conditioned space, such as a residential home or commercial establishment. As one example, a heating and/or cooling appliance may be an air conditioning system. An air conditioning system may include a blower configured to draw conditioned (cooled or heated) air out of the air conditioning system, where the conditioned air is produced using a heat exchanger of the air conditioning system. That is, these blowers may pull the air out of the air conditioning system and into the conditioned space. This air may be distributed within the conditioned space via ductwork installed in the conditioned space. Further examples of heating and/or cooling appliances are described elsewhere herein.

The blower in this example may be driven by a motor (the terms “motor,” “blower motor,” and the like may be used interchangeably herein) mounted to the fan. The motor may cause the fan blades of the blower to rotate to draw the air through the blower. The motor may also be selectively operated to control the rotation speed of the blades of the fan to control the amount of air that flows through the blower at any given point in time. A controller may be provided to send electrical signals to the motor to cause the motor to perform these functions. In some configurations, a heating and/or cooling appliance may also include electric heat coils.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary heating and/or cooling appliance, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 2A-2B illustrate close-up views of a controller mounting bracket, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 3A illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 3B illustrates a view of a heating and/or cooling appliance including the controller mounting bracket of FIG. 3A, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 3C illustrates a view of a heating and/or cooling appliance including another controller mounting bracket, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a close-up view of yet another controller mounting bracket with an enclosure, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates airflow simulation data, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 8A illustrates a bottom-up view of a controller enclosure mounted to a blower shelf, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 8B illustrates a top-down view of the controller enclosure mounted to the blower shelf of FIG. 8A, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIGS. 8C-8D illustrate side views of the controller enclosure mounted to the blower shelf of FIG. 8A, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 8E illustrates a perspective bottom-up view of a controller enclosure mounted to the blower shelf of FIG. 8A, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates another perspective bottom-up view of a controller enclosure mounted to the blower shelf, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates a close-up view of a wire-routing aperture for a blower shelf, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 11 shows a partially disassembled view of a heating and/or cooling appliance including a mounting shield, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 12 shows the partially disassembled view of the heating and/or cooling appliance of FIG. 11 including a cover structure for a mounting shield, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of the mounting shield of FIG. 11, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 14 shows a top-down view of the mounting shield of FIG. 11, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

FIG. 15 shows a front view of the mounting shield of FIG. 11, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure is directed to a heating and/or cooling appliance in which the one or more controllers used to control the operation of various components of the heating and/or cooling appliance are mounted at a distance from the electric heat coils provided above the blower. The electric heat coils radiate heat, which has the potential to impact the performance and life span of any electronic components that are positioned nearby the electric heat coils (such as electronic components of the motor controller or any other controller. Specifically, the one or more controllers are mounted at specific location(s) that minimize (or negate) the impact of the heat radiating from the electric heat coils on the electronic components of the one or more controllers, while simultaneously minimizing the impact of the physical structure of one or more controllers on the airflow generated by the blower.

It was surprisingly discovered that there exist locations on the top and bottom surfaces of the shelf in which the one or more controllers have a minimal (or no) impact on the airflow generated by the blower that is also mounted to the top surface of the shelf (as shown through the airflow simulation data presented in FIG. 7). For example, a controller may be mounted such that the height of the controller (and/or the bracket to which the controller is mounted) is less than or equal to the lowest point of the fan blades of the blower. Other similar locations may also be possible where the airflow generated by the blower is minimally impacted by the physical structure of the controller. This was an unexpected result as one of ordinary skill in the art would typically assume that positioning the controller beside the blower would inhibit the airflow produced by the blower.

Accordingly, the heating and/or cooling appliance configurations described herein address both of the aforementioned challenges (reducing the temperature exposure of the controller while still maintaining the airflow produced by the blower). In one or more embodiments, the heating and/or cooling appliance may include a motor controller configured to control operations of the blower motor and a unit controller configured to control generation operations of the heating and/or cooling appliance (including other components of the heating and/or cooling appliance). Typically, a motor controller is affixed to the blower. However, if an electric heating coil is positioned above or otherwise downstream from the blower motor, then radiant heat from the heating coil may impinge on the blower and any controller affixed to the blower. FIGS. 8A-10 illustrate that the blower is mounted to the top surface of a shelf provided within the heating and/or cooling appliance and the motor controller may be mounted to the bottom surface of the same shelf (however, in some embodiments, the motor controller may be mounted to the top surface and the unit controller may be mounted to the bottom surface as well). Positioning the motor controller away from the heating coil reduces or eliminates the radiant heat to which the motor controller is exposed. The shelf may include a notch or aperture or may otherwise be configured to allow for wired electrical connections to be routed from the controller to the blower motor. FIGS. 2A-6) illustrate that the unit controller may be mounted to the top surface of the shelf along with the blower. These are merely exemplary configurations, however, and are not intended to be limiting. The controllers may also be mounted in any other locations on and/or within the heating and/or cooling appliance at a distance from the electric heat coils provided above the blower.

In some embodiments, the blower may also be configured to minimize the amount of airflow “leakage” that occurs from the fan. The amount of leakage may refer to the amount of air that flows out of the sides of the blower rather than flowing directly upwards through the blower. For example, the blower may be configured such that the diameter of the bottom portion of the blower is greater than the diameter of the top portion of the blower. However, the blower may also be provided in any other configuration (for example, the diameter of the bottom portion may be the same as the diameter of the top portion).

A heating and/or cooling appliance may generally refer to any system configured to heat and/or cool the air in a conditioned space, such as a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. Non-limiting examples of such systems may include heat pumps, gas furnaces, air conditioning systems, etc. However, a heating and/or cooling appliance may not necessarily be limited to heating and/or cooling air. As another example, a heating and/or cooling appliance may generally refer to any system configured to produce a heated fluid, such as a water heater, a boiler, a pool heater, etc. A heating and/or cooling appliance may also be used to heat and/or cool any other fluid, such as a gas, liquid, etc. Yet further examples of heating and/or cooling appliances may include integrated heat pump water heaters (HPWHs), monobloc/split HPWHs, Packaged HVAC units, split HVAC units, etc. Although some figures illustrated herein show a particular type of heating and/or cooling appliance, this is merely for illustrative purposes and is not intended to limit the type of heating and/or cooling appliance that is applicable. The approach of positioning the one or more controllers at a distance from the electric heat coils without inhibiting the airflow produced by the blower may also be applicable in any other type of heating and/or cooling appliance in any environment.

Turning to the figures, FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary heating and/or cooling appliance. Specifically, FIG. 1 shows an indoor unit 100 (sometimes referred to as an air handler unit) of an air conditioning system including separate indoor and outdoor units. The indoor unit 100 is shown as including a blower 102 that is operated by a motor 103. The motor 103 receives signals from a motor controller. Specifically, the motor controller is shown as being provided within a controller enclosure 104, however, the motor controller may also be provided without the enclosure as well. For example, the motor controller may instead simply be a printed circuit board (PCB) that is directly mounted within or outside of the indoor unit 100 (or any other location). The motor controller is shown as mounted to a bottom surface of a shelf 105 that supports the blower 102. The indoor unit 100 may also include a unit controller (located within a partial enclosure 1007 shown in FIG. 1. The unit controller is shown as being mounted to a top surface of the shelf 105. The unit controller may provide control signals to the motor controller and/or other components of the indoor unit 100 to control their operation. The motor controller may in turn cause the blower 102 to operate as desired (e.g., supplying sufficient current, voltage, inverter control signals, or other signal characteristics to cause the blower to operate at a desired speed, mass flow, or other characteristic). The indoor unit 100 may also include any other number of controllers (or may only include one of the controllers that is mounted either on top of or on the bottom of the shelf 105, or in another suitable location as described herein).

The indoor unit 100 is also shown as including a heat exchanger 106. The heat exchanger 106 may be part of a refrigeration circuit in a vapor compression cycle. In a cooling mode of operation, the heat exchanger 106 may operate as an evaporator and in a heating mode of operation, the heat exchanger 106 may operate as a condenser. One of ordinary skill in the art would understand that this is not intended to be a comprehensive illustration of every component that may be included in a heating and/or cooling appliance but is merely intended to illustrate some of the main components that may be included. The configuration of the indoor unit 100 may also vary, such as the size and shape of the indoor unit 100 and the components included within the indoor unit 100, as well as the arrangement of the components in the indoor unit 100.

During the operation of the air conditioning system in a cooling mode, warm indoor air is pulled (or pushed) over the heat exchanger 106 (which may be the evaporator coil of the air conditioning system) by the blower 102 (and/or a separate fan of the indoor unit 100). As the liquid refrigerant inside the heat exchanger 106 converts to gas, heat is absorbed from the indoor air into the refrigerant, thus cooling the air that is pulled over the heat exchanger 106. The blower 102 is then operated to pull the cooled air into a conditioned space (such as a residential home or commercial establishment) that is being cooled by the air conditioning system. In some instances, this cooled air may be distributed throughout the conditioned space using ductwork installed within the conditioned space. The refrigerant gas then passes into a compressor located in an outside unit (not shown in the figure) of the air conditioning system. The compressor pressurizes the refrigerant gas and sends the refrigerant into a heat exchanger of the outside unit, operating as a condenser coil. A fan pulls outdoor air through the condenser coil, allowing the air to absorb heating energy from the home and release it outside. During this process, the refrigerant is converted back to a liquid. The refrigerant then travels back to the indoor unit 100. The refrigerant passes through an expansion valve, which regulates the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator coil. The cold refrigerant then absorbs more heat from the indoor air and the cycle continues.

In one or more embodiments, an axial plenum fan may be used as the blower 102. In an axial fan, the air that flows through the fan does not change direction. Instead, the air flows into and out of the fan in the same direction. Given that the axial fan is a plenum fan (or plug fan), the fan does not include a shroud. In various implementations, the axial plenum fan may be a backward inclined fan, such as shown in FIG. 3C. However, these are merely exemplary types of blowers that may be included in a heating and/or cooling appliance and other blower configurations may also be used as well.

The heating and/or cooling appliance may also include electric heat coils 1014, which may be resistive heat coils, for example, that are used to heat air flowing over the electric heat coils. The electric heat coils 1014 are provided above the blower 102 or otherwise downstream of the blower 102 within the heating and/or cooling appliance. As indicated above, the electric heat coils 1014 produce radiative heat that may impact the performance and life span of certain electronic components, such as those that may be included on one or more controllers provided within the heating and/or cooling appliance. If an axial plenum fan is used that does not include a shroud, a controller mounted to the blower 102 or nearby the blower 102 may not have protection from heat that is generated by the electric heat coils 1014, particularly radiated heat. It should be noted that the electric heat coils 1014 are represented as “zig-zag” lines within the heating and/or cooling appliance, however, this is illustration is merely intended to represent an electric heat coil and is not intended to provide an indication of an exact configuration of an electric heat coil that may be provided in a heating and/or cooling appliance as described herein. That is, the electric heat coils 1014 may be any other shape and/or size and also may be provided at any other location within the heating and/or cooling appliance. Furthermore, although the subsequent figures do not necessarily depict the electric heat coils, the electric heat coils may also be provided in any other heating and/or cooling appliance of any other figure described herein.

The indoor unit 100 shown in FIG. 1 is only intended to illustrate an example of a portion of a type of heating and/or cooling appliance and is not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. The approach described herein of separating one or more controllers from the electric heat coils may also be applied to other types of heating and/or cooling appliances as well. Additionally, although FIG. 1 shows an embodiment in which the motor controller (included within the enclosure 104) is mounted beneath the shelf 105 that may be used to support the blower 102 within the indoor unit 100, this is merely to generally illustrate an example of an overall heating and/or cooling appliance. This specific embodiments of mounting the motor controller beneath the shelf 105 is described in further detail with respect to FIGS. 8A-10. However, there may be other possibilities for mounting the motor controller as well. That is, there may be multiple different options for mounting the controller separately from the electric heat coils. Furthermore, although some examples of options for mounting locations are described herein, other mounting locations may also be possible depending on the configuration of the heating and/or cooling appliance in which the blower 102 and controllers are provided.

Turning to FIGS. 2A-6, examples of configurations in which a unit controller 230 is mounted at a distance from the electric heat coils within and beside a blower 202 without inhibiting the airflow produced by the blower 202 of the heating and/or cooling appliance are shown. As indicated above, in one or more embodiments, the unit controller 230 (described with respect to FIGS. 2A-6) may be mounted on top of a blower shelf 204 and a motor controller 806 (described with respect to FIGS. 8A-10) may be mounted on the bottom of the shelf. However, other configurations are also possible (for example, the motor controller may be mounted to the top of the shelf in a similar manner as is shown in FIGS. 2A-6 and the unit controller may be mounted to the bottom of the shelf). Additionally, it should be noted that while reference is made to unit controllers and motor controllers, the same mounting principles may also be applied to other types of controllers or other electronic components as well.

Specifically, the configurations shown in FIGS. 2A-6 involve the use of a controller mounting bracket to which the unit controller is mounted, where the controller mounting bracket is mounted in an area within the heating and/or cooling appliance that does not interfere with the airflow generated by the blower of the heating and/or cooling appliance.

Beginning with FIGS. 2A-2B, close-up views are illustrated of a first type of exemplary controller mounting bracket 222 for a unit controller that is disposed within an air handler of a heating and/or cooling appliance 200. One of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that the heating and/or cooling appliance 200 (e.g., indoor air handler) may include similar components and functionality as the heating and/or cooling appliance 100, such as a blower 202, a shelf 204 for holding the blower 202, a heat exchanger (not visible in FIGS. 2A-2B), etc.

The controller mounting bracket 222 shown in FIGS. 2A-2B is positioned away from the electric heat coils provided above the blower (not shown in the figure). The placement of the controller mounting bracket 222 away from the electric heat coils prevents the heat generated by the electric heat coils from impacting the controller 230 (which may be the unit controller, for example), including the electronic components provided on and/or within the controller 230. For example, prevents the electronic components of the controller 230 from being exposed to the heat generated by the electric heat coils, which may degrade or otherwise impact the performance of the components over time.

In embodiments, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be attached to a top surface of a shelf 204 of the heating and/or cooling appliance 200. Specifically, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be provided in an airflow “void” that exists beside the blower 202 below the height of the fan blades of the blower 202. In some instances, the “void” may refer to the region between the top surface of the shelf 204 and the bottom portion of the blower 204, however, the void may also encompass other areas where airflow is minimal as well. While one of ordinary skill in the art would typically assume that providing the controller mounting bracket 222 in this location would hinder the airflow produced by the blower 202, it was an unexpected result of testing the configuration shown in FIGS. 2A-2B (illustrated through the simulation data 700 presented in FIG. 7) that providing the controller mounting bracket 222 in this specific location has minimal (or no) impact on the airflow produced by the blower 202.

In some embodiments, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be configured such that a height 250 of the controller mounting bracket 222 is less than or equal to the height at which a bottom portion of the one or more fan blades of the blower 204 are located. More specifically, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be positioned at a height that is less than or equal to a height at which a bottom rim 252 of the blower 202 is located. In some embodiments, the blower 202 may also be configured to minimize the amount of airflow “leakage” that occurs from the fan. The amount of leakage may refer to the amount of air that flows out of the sides of the blower 202 rather than flowing directly upwards through the blower 202. For example, the blower 202 may be configured such that the diameter of the bottom portion of the blower 202 (e.g., the bottom rim 252) is greater than the diameter of the top portion of the blower 202 (this may also apply to any other blower described herein).

Although FIGS. 2A-2B show the controller mounting bracket 222 provided at one specific location on the shelf 204, this is not intended to be limiting and the controller mounting bracket 222 may also be provided at other locations on the shelf as well. For example, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be provided at any other location around the circumference of the blower 202 within the “void” where the controller mounting bracket 222 has minimal impact on the airflow produced by the blower 202. The controller mounting bracket 222 may also be mounted at any other location in which the controller mounting bracket 222 has minimal or no impact on the airflow generated by the blower 202. Additionally, the controller (and the structure to which the controller is mounted) may not necessarily be mounted to the shelf 204 but may also be mounted to any other structure on and/or within the heating and/or cooling appliance as well.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be configured such that the controller mounting bracket 222 is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the shelf 204 when the controller mounting bracket 222 is mounted to the shelf 204 (as shown in the figure). However, other embodiments may exist in which the controller mounting bracket 222 is mounted to the shelf 204 in other configurations (as shown in the subsequent figures). For example, the controller mounting bracket 222 may be mounted parallel relative to the top surface of the shelf 204 or at any other angle relative to the top surface of the shelf 204 as well. The controller mounting bracket 222 may also include one or more portions that are perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the shelf 204 when the controller mounting bracket 222 is mounted to the shelf 204 and also one or more portions that are parallel or substantially parallel to the top surface of the shelf 204 when the controller mounting bracket 222 is mounted to the shelf 204.

The controller mounting bracket 222 may include multiple surfaces. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the controller mounting bracket 222 includes a first surface 228, a second surface 226, and a third surface 224 (however, the controller mounting bracket 222 may also include any other number of surfaces). The second surface 226 and the third surface 224 are shown as being provided at an approximately 45 degree angle relative to the first surface 228 to provide further structural rigidity to the controller mounting bracket 222. However, this specific configuration is merely exemplary and the second surface 226 and the third surface 224 may also be provided at any other angle relative to the first surface 228.

The first surface 228 may be sized such that the first surface 228 may receive the controller 230. The first surface 228 may also be sized such that the first surface 228 may receive other electrical components as well. For example, FIGS. 2A-2B also show that a transformer 232 is mounted to the first surface 228 of the controller mounting bracket 222. The transformer 232 may be a step-down transformer that reduces the voltage used to drive the blower 202 down to a level that is acceptable for providing to the controller 230. For example, the blower 202 may use 230V/208V/110V power and the transformer 232 may step down that voltage to 24V to provide to the controller 230. These numbers are merely exemplary and the step-down voltage may also be associated with any other input and output voltages. Additionally, in some instances, the controller 230 may operate without requiring the transformer 232. Any other types of electronic components may also be mounted to the controller mounting bracket 222 as well.

Although FIGS. 2A-2B shown one specific configuration in which the first surface 228 is sized to receive the controller 230 and the transformer 232, this size is merely exemplary and other sizes may also be possible depending on the size(s) of the component(s) that are mounted to the controller mounting bracket 222. Additionally, although the first surface 228 is shown as being larger than the second surface 226 and the third surface 224, this is also not necessarily intended to be limiting and the sizes of the surfaces may vary relative to one another in any other manner. Furthermore, although the controller mounting bracket 222 is shown such that the components (e.g., the controller 230, transformer 232, etc.) are mounted to the first surface 228, the components may also be mounted to the second surface 226, the third surface 224, or any combination of any of the surfaces depending on the configuration of the controller mounting bracket 222 that is used. Additionally, while the electronic components are shown as being mounted to one side of the controller mounting bracket 222, this is also not intended to be limiting and the electronic components may also be mounted to the opposite side of the controlled mounting bracket 222 as well (or electronic components may be mounted to the front side of the controller mounting bracket 222 and the rear side of the controller mounting bracket 222).

In embodiments, the controller mounting bracket 200 may also include one or more flanges. For example, FIGS. 2A-2B specifically show a first flange 240 and a second flange 244. The first flange 240 is provided at a bottom portion of the second surface 226 and the second flange 244 is provided at a bottom portion of the third surface 224. Each of the flanges may be provided perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to their respective surfaces. Each of the flanges may also include one or more fastener apertures configured to receive fasteners (e.g., screw, bolt, rivet, etc.) to secure the flanges to the top surface of the shelf 204. For example, FIGS. 2A-2B show that a first fastener 242 is provided through a fastener aperture (not visible in the figure) on the first flange 240 and a second fastener 246 is provided through a fastener aperture (not visible in the figure) on the second flange 244. There may also be corresponding fastener apertures on the shelf 204, such that when the fastener apertures on the one or more flanges and the fastener apertures on the shelf 204 are aligned, the fastener may be inserted into both fastener apertures to secure the controller mounting bracket 222 to the top surface of the shelf 204. In this configuration, the surfaces of the controller mounting bracket 222 are perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the shelf 204 when the controller mounting bracket 222 is secured to the shelf 204 using the fasteners.

Although FIGS. 2A-2B show that two flanges are provided and the two flanges are located at the second surface 226 and the third surface 224 of the controller mounting bracket 222, this is merely one exemplary configuration. Any other number of flanges may also be provided and any other flanges may be provided at any of the surfaces of the controller mounting bracket 222. Additionally, the flanges may be any other size and/or shape and may include more than a single fastener aperture.

Additionally, although FIGS. 2A-2B show that the controller mounting bracket 222 is removably attached to the shelf 204 in the upright manner using the fastener provided through the fastener aperture of the flanges, this is merely one manner by which the controller mounting bracket 222 may be attached to the shelf 204. The controller mounting bracket 222 may be attached to the shelf 204 using any other suitable mechanism, such as gluing, welding, or otherwise. In some instances, the controller mounting bracket 222 may also be formed as a permanent structure of the shelf 204 or another portion of the heating and/or cooling appliance 200.

Furthermore, although several embodiments described herein include a bracket or similar type of structure for holding the controller that is used to provide control signals to the blower motor, the controller may not necessarily need to be mounted to such a bracket or other type of structure. For example, the controller (or any other electronic components) may instead be mounted directly to the shelf 204 or any other structure on and/or within the heating and/or cooling appliance 200.

FIG. 3A illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket 306 for a unit controller of a heating and/or cooling appliance 400. FIG. 3B illustrates a view of a heating and/or cooling appliance 300 (e.g., indoor air handler) including the controller mounting bracket 306. The heating and/or cooling appliance 300 may be the same as, or similar to, heating and/or cooling appliance 200 shown in FIGS. 2A-2B. Specifically, FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate another exemplary controller mounting bracket 306 configuration in which the surfaces of the controller mounting bracket 306 are parallel or substantially parallel with the top surface of the shelf 304 when the controller mounting bracket 306 is mounted to the shelf 304.

In the more complete view of the heating and/or cooling appliance 300 shown in FIG. 3B, the motor 303 that drives the blower 302 is visible. As described above, and as shown in FIG. 3B, the motor 303 may be provided on a top portion of the blower 302 and located above the fan blades of the blower 302. Electric heat coils (shown in FIG. 1, for example) may be provided above the blower 302 and may generate heat during their operation. Accordingly, the controller mounting bracket 306 is positioned away from the electric heat coils to prevent the heat generated by the electric heat coils from impacting the electronic components of the unit (for example, prevents the components of the controller 308 from being exposed to the heat generated by the electric heat coils, which may degrade or otherwise impact the performance of the components over time).

• • [add a description of placement of the controller mounting bracket 306 in the void area similar to the description in paragraphs 33-36 above].

FIG. 3B also shows that any of the components provided on the controller mounting bracket 306 may be in electrical communication with other components of the heating and/or cooling appliance 300. Specifically, a wired connection 330 may be provided between the controller 308 on the controller mounting bracket 306 and other components of the heating and/or cooling appliance. The wired connections 330 may allow the controller 308 (or any other component mounted to the controller mounting bracket 306) to transmit and/or receive electrical signals to and/or from any other component of the heating and/or cooling appliance. For example, the wired connections 330 may also include connections for providing power to the controller 308 via the transformer 310. As another example, the controller 308 may be in electrical communication with one or more sensors of the heating and/or cooling appliance 300 and may send control signals to the components of the heating and/or cooling appliance based on data obtained from the one or more sensors.

The number of wires included in the wired connection 330, the routing of the wired connection 330, and other aspects of the configuration of the wired connections 330 shown in FIGS. 3A-3B are merely illustrative and the wired connections 330 may also be configured in any other suitable manner. Additionally, in some embodiments, the wired connections 330 may not be necessary and the various components may communicate wirelessly as well. One of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate that any wired or wireless communication protocol may be used for such communications. This description of the electrical connections between the various components is also applicable to any other heating and/or cooling appliance described herein in any of the other figures (even if such connections are not necessarily illustrated in every figure).

FIG. 3C shows another view of an exemplary controller mounting bracket 350 that is mounted to a shelf of a heating and/or cooling appliance 300. In this example, the controller mounting bracket 350 is mounted flush against the shelf 304.

FIG. 4 illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket 406 for a unit controller of a heating and/or cooling appliance 400. The controller mounting bracket 406 is another variation of the other controller mounting brackets described herein (for example, controller mounting bracket 222, controller mounting bracket 306, etc.). Similar to the controller mounting brackets shown in FIGS. 2A-2B and 3A-3C, the controller mounting bracket 406 is mounted to a top surface of the shelf 404 used to support the blower 402. The controller mounting bracket 406 is also positioned separately from the electric heat coils. For example, the controller mounting bracket 406 is also shown as being provided in a “void” 405 including the region between the top surface of the shelf 404 and the bottom portion of the blower 402, however, the void may also encompass other areas where airflow is minimal as well (and accordingly the controller mounting bracket 406 may be provided at other locations as well). Also similar to the controller mounting bracket 222 shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the controller mounting bracket 406 of FIG. 4 is shown as including three surfaces (for example, a first surface 408, a second surface 410, and a third surface that is not visible in the perspective of FIG. 4).

However, in contrast with other controller mounting brackets described herein, rather than the second surface 410 and the third surface being rectangular or substantially rectangular, as shown in FIGS. 2A-2B, the second surface 410 and the third surface are shown as being triangular in FIG. 4. Accordingly, when the controller mounting bracket 406 is mounted to the top surface of the shelf 404, rather than the first surface 408 being perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the shelf 404, the first surface 408 may be positioned at an angle relative to the top surface of the shelf 404.

FIG. 4 illustrates that various configurations of controller mounting brackets are possible and that and of the surfaces of the controlling mounting bracket may be any number of different sizes and/or shapes and the specific configurations shown in the figures are merely illustrative of examples of some of the potential configurations.

FIG. 5 illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket 530 for a unit controller of a heating and/or cooling appliance 500. The controller mounting bracket 530 is yet another variation of the other controller mounting brackets described herein (for example, controller mounting bracket 222, controller mounting bracket 306, controller mounting bracket 406, etc.). Similar to the controller mounting brackets shown in FIGS. 2A-4, the controller mounting bracket 530 is mounted to a top surface of the shelf 504 used to support the blower 502. The controller mounting bracket 530 is also positioned remotely from the electric heat coils (not visible in FIG. 5). For example, the controller mounting bracket 530 is also shown as being provided in a “void” 505 including the region between the top surface of the shelf 504 and the bottom portion of the blower 502, however, the void 505 may also encompass other areas where airflow is minimal as well (and accordingly the controller mounting bracket 530 may be provided at other locations as well).

In contrast with the other controller mounting brackets described herein, the controller mounting bracket 530 includes a first surface 532 and a second surface 534, with the first surface 532 being provided at an angle relative to the second surface 534 to provide additional structural rigidity to the controller mounting bracket 530 when the controller mounting bracket 530 is secured to the shelf 504. While the first surface 532 and the second surface 534 are shown as being rectangular in shape, the first surface 532 and the second surface 534 may also be any other shape or combination of shapes. Additionally, the angle between the first surface 532 and the second surface 534 may be any other angle as well.

In embodiments, the first surface 532 may be sized and shaped to receive a unit controller 526 (which may be the same as, or similar to, controllers 230, 308, 416, and/or any other controllers described herein or otherwise) and the second surface 534 may be sized and shaped to receive another component, such as the transformer 538 that provides power to the controller 526. While the controller mounting bracket 530 is shown as including one component on the first surface 532 and another component on the second surface 534, this is merely exemplary, and any other number of components may also be provided on either surface. Accordingly, one surface may be sized larger than the other surface to be able to receive and hold multiple of such components.

Also similar to other controller mounting brackets described herein, the controller mounting bracket 530 may include one or more flanges. For example, FIG. 5 specifically shows a first flange 535 extending from the first surface 532. A second flange that is not visible in FIG. 5 may also extend from the second surface 534 as well. Specifically, the one or more flanges may be at a bottom portion of the first surface 532 and the second surface 534. Each of the flanges may be provided perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to their respective surfaces. Each of the flanges may also include one or more fastener apertures configured to receive fasteners to secure the flanges to the top surface of the shelf 504. For example, the first flange 535 is shown as including fastener aperture 537 and fastener aperture 539 (however, any other number of fastener apertures may be provided). There may also be corresponding fastener apertures on the shelf 504, such that when the fastener apertures on the one or more flanges and the fastener apertures on the shelf 504 are aligned, the fastener may be inserted into both fastener apertures to secure the controller mounting bracket 530 to the top surface of the shelf 504. In this configuration, the surfaces of the controller mounting bracket 530 are perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the shelf 504 when the controller mounting bracket 530 is secured to the shelf 504 using the fasteners.

Similar to the other controller mounting bracket configurations, although the controller mounting bracket 530 specifically includes two flanges, this is merely one exemplary configuration. Any other number of flanges may also be provided and the flanges may be provided at any of the surfaces of the controller mounting bracket 530. Additionally, the flanges may be any other size and/or shape and may include more than a single fastener aperture.

Furthermore, although FIG. 5 shows that the controller mounting bracket 530 is removably attached to the shelf 504 in the upright manner using the fastener provided through the fastener aperture of the flanges, this is merely one manner by which the controller mounting bracket 530 may be attached to the shelf 504. The controller mounting bracket 530 may be attached to the shelf 504 using any other suitable mechanism. In some instances, the controller mounting bracket 530 may also be formed as a permanent structure of the shelf 504 or another portion of the heating and/or cooling appliance 500.

FIG. 6 illustrates a close-up view of another controller mounting bracket with an enclosure 606 for housing a unit controller of a heating and/or cooling appliance 600. As described above, although the controller mounting brackets shown in FIGS. 2A-5 are not shown as being provided in an enclosure 606, in some embodiments, such an enclosure 606 may be provided. This enclosure 606 may protect the electronic components mounted to the controller mounting bracket (the controller, transformer, etc.) from the external environment and also prevent external conditions, users, etc. from interacting with the electronic components in an undesired manner. Although the enclosure 606 is shown as covering the entire front surface (or surfaces) of the controller mounting bracket to which the electronic components are mounted, this is not intended to be limiting. The enclosure 606 may also be configured to cover any other amount of the controller mounting bracket. For example, the enclosure 606 may only cover one or some of the electronic components on the controller mounting bracket. As another example, the enclosure 606 may entirely enclose all of the controller mounting bracket, including the rear surface or surfaces.

FIG. 7 illustrates Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) airflow simulation data 700. The airflow interference shown indicates there is no interference from either the unit control or motor control as located per this application. The eddy currents of highest velocity are at the edge of the venturi, going into the inlet side of the blower, and not obstructed by either the motor or unit control.

FIGS. 8A-8D illustrate that a controller (provided within a controller enclosure 806 shown in FIGS. 8A-8D) may also be mounted to a bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800 (which may be the same as, or similar to, any of the shelves described herein, such as shelves 204, 304, 404, 504, etc.)Specifically, FIG. 8A illustrates a bottom-up view of a controller enclosure 806 mounted to the shelf 800. FIG. 8B illustrates a top-down view of the controller enclosure 806 mounted to the shelf 800. FIGS. 8C-8D illustrate side views of the controller enclosure 806 mounted to the shelf 800.

As indicated above, the controller that is mounted to the bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800 may, in one or more embodiments, be the motor controller that is responsible for sending control signals to the motor 810 of the blower 801. That is, the unit controller shown in FIGS. 2A-6 may be mounted to the top surface of the shelf 810 and the motor controller may be mounted to the bottom surface of the shelf 810. However, this configuration is merely exemplary and the different types of controllers may be mounted in any other configuration as well (as long as the controllers are mounted at a distance from the electric heat coils without impacting (or minimally impacting) the airflow produced by the blower 801. Additionally, in some configurations, a single controller may be used to control operations of the motor 801 and the other components of the heating and/or cooling appliance. That is, is it not necessarily required that two separate controllers are used.

In FIG. 8A, the shelf 800 is shown as including a central aperture 803 (however, the aperture through which the blower 801 draws air may be any other size and/or shape and may be provided at any other location on the shelf 800). The blower 801 may be mounted over the central aperture 803 such that the blower 801 may draw air up through the shelf 800 via the central aperture 803. The controller enclosure 806 is shown as being mounted to the bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800 proximate to a particular corner of the shelf 800. The controller enclosure 860 is mounted in this location such that the controller enclosure 806 does not overlap with the central aperture 803 and inhibits some of the airflow that is produced through the central enclosure 803 by the blower 801. While the controller enclosure 806 is shown as being mounted in a particular corner of the shelf 800, this is not intended to be limiting and the controller enclosure 806 may also be mounted to any other portion of the bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800.

Even though the controller is mounted to the bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800, the controller may still be in electrical communication with the motor 810 of the blower 801 such that the controller may provide electrical signals to the motor 810 to control operation of the motor 810. Accordingly, the shelf 800 may be configured such that a wired connection 807 may be routed from the controller, through the shelf 800 and to the motor 810.

The shelf 800 may be configured in a number of different ways to provide for the routing of the wired connection 807. In one example, shown in FIGS. 8A-8B, a notch 808 may be cut into one of the sides of the shelf 800. The notch 808 may be sized and shaped such that the wired connection 807 may be provided through the notch 808. However, the size and shape of the notch 808 shown in FIGS. 8A-8B is merely exemplary and the notch 808 may also be any other size and/or shape. The notch 808 may also be provided at any other location on the shelf 800. Additionally, multiple notches may be provided to allow for flexibility in terms of how the wired connection 807 is routed or to allow for multiple wired connections to be routed through the shelf 800 if the controller requires multiple wired connections or if another component is mounted to the bottom surface 802 of the shelf 800 (or another component provided below the shelf 800 in the heating and/or cooling appliance (not shown in FIGS. 8A-8D)) that includes a wired connection that is desired to be routed to a location above the shelf 800 in the heating and/or cooling appliance.

As another example, rather than including a notch 808 that is cut into the side of the shelf 800, an aperture (or multiple apertures) may be provided in the shelf 800. The wired connection 807 may also be routed around the shelf 800 in some embodiments. In yet further embodiments, an electrical connector may be embedded within a notch or aperture in the shelf 800. The electrical connector may include a wired connection with the motor 810. Accordingly, a separate electrical connector including a wired connection with the controller may be inserted into the connector embedded in the shelf 800 to complete the electrical connection between the motor 810 and the controller. This embodiment may be advantageous because the two connectors may be easily connected and disconnected to electrically connect the motor 810 and the controller. Accordingly, if it is desired to remove the motor 810 or the controller from the heating and/or cooling appliance (e.g., for maintenance or other purposes), the two connectors may simply be disconnected rather than a wired connection being routed out of a notch 808 or aperture, for example.

In some instances, the controller may be configured to perform wireless communications and may wirelessly communicate with the motor 810 or another controller that is hardwired to the motor 810. In such instances, the shelf 800 may not need to be configured to allow for a wired connection to be routed through the shelf 800.

FIG. 9 illustrates another perspective bottom-up view of a controller enclosure 906 mounted to the blower shelf 900. That is, FIG. 9 illustrates another exemplary configuration in which the controller enclosure 806 is mounted in a different position on the bottom surface 902 of the blower shelf 900. Specifically, the controller enclosure 906 is shown as being mounted to a “center” portion of an edge of the bottom surface 902 of the blower shelf 900, rather than being mounted to a corner of the bottom surface 902 of the blower shelf 900 as shown in FIGS. 8A-8E, for example.

FIG. 9 also illustrates that the size and shape of the controller enclosure 906 (and/or the controller included within the controller enclosure 906) shown in any of the figures is merely illustrative and the size and shape of the controller enclosure 906 (and/or the controller included within the controller enclosure 906) may vary depending on the use case. For example, the controller enclosure 906 is shown as being substantially rectangular, rather than circular or substantially circular, as shown in FIGS. 8A-8E. Additionally, the unit controller mounting bracket shown in FIGS. 2A-5 may also be mounted to the bottom surface of the blower shelf rather than the top surface as shown in FIGS. 2A-5.

FIG. 10 illustrates a close-up view of a wire-routing aperture 1010 for a blower shelf 1015. FIG. 10 illustrates an indoor unit 1000 that is similar to the indoor unit 100 shown in FIG. 1. For example, the indoor unit 1000 includes a blower 1002 that is driven by a motor 1003, a blower shelf 1005 on which the blower 1002 is mounted, a controller enclosure 1004, a heat exchanger 1006, etc. The close-up view of the controller enclosure 1004 shows that the wire routing aperture 1012 may be provided in the blower shelf 1005 such that wired connections may be routed from the controller within the controller enclosure 1004 to the motor 1003. In this manner, the controller may transmit electrical signals to the motor 1003 to control operation of the motor 1003 and the blower 1002. As described above with respect to FIGS. 8A-8E, the wired connections may also be routed through and/or around the blower shelf 1005 in any other suitable manner.

FIGS. 11-15 show a mounting shield that may be provided as an alternative to the controller mounting bracket that is illustrated in the prior figures. Particularly, FIG. 11 shows a partially disassembled view of a heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 including a mounting shield 1102. FIG. 12 shows the partially disassembled view of the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 of FIG. 11 including a cover structure 1120 for a mounting shield 1102. FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of the mounting shield 1102 of FIG. 11. FIG. 14 shows a top-down view of the mounting shield 1102 of FIG. 11. FIG. 15 shows a front view of the mounting shield 1102 of FIG. 11.

Beginning with FIG. 11, the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 may be the same as, or similar to, any other heating and/or cooling appliance described herein or otherwise (and the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 may be any type of heating and/or cooling appliance described herein or otherwise). Continuing the example presented in FIG. 1, heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 may specifically be an indoor unit (sometimes referred to as an air handler unit) of an air conditioning system including separate indoor and outdoor units. That is, the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 (similar to the heating and/or cooling appliance shown in FIG. 1) may also include a blower 1104 that is operated by a motor 1104. The motor 1103 receives signals from a motor controller. The indoor unit may also include a unit controller. The unit controller may provide control signals to the motor controller and/or other components of the indoor unit to control their operation. The motor controller may in turn cause the blower 1104 to operate as desired (e.g., supplying sufficient current, voltage, inverter control signals, or other signal characteristics to cause the blower to operate at a desired speed, mass flow, or other characteristic). The indoor unit may also include any other number of controllers, as well as various other types of electronic components.

In contrast to the embodiments shown in FIGS. 1-10, in the embodiments shown in FIGS. 11-15, the heating and/or cooling appliance includes the larger mounting shield 1102. In the example shown in FIG. 11, the mounting shield 1102 is a structure that is vertically oriented within the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 (that is, the mounting shield 1102 is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the shelf 1105 on which the blower 1104 is mounted. The mounting shield 1102 may be secured within the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 in any suitable manner. For example, the mounting shield may be fastened (or otherwise secured to) the shelf 1105 and/or to any other structures of the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 (such as the sidewalls of the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100). The larger mounting shield 1102 is advantageous because it provides greater surface area to accommodate additional or larger electronics that are mounted to the mounting shield 1102. The mounting shield 1102 also prevents a user from easily reaching into the unit while the blower 1104 is operational, thereby significantly reducing the likelihood (or eliminating the chance) that a user comes into contact with the fan blades of the blower 1104 while the blower 1104 is operational. For example, when servicing electronics adjacent to the blower, the mounting shield 1102 prevents accidental exposure to the blades of the blower, which may be operating at high speeds. This is especially advantageous in configurations in which the blower is a mixed flow blower and therefore does not include a fan housing for the blades of the fan like traditional axial fans. FIG. 12 also shows that a cover structure 1140 may be included in the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100. The cover structure 1140 may be located above the mounting shield 1102 and may further restrict access to the blower 1104 while the mounting shield 1102 is installed in the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100. Although the cover structure 1140 is shown as being a particular size and shape (and position in the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100), these are all exemplary and the cover structure 1140 may be positioned (and sized and shaped) in any other manner. The cover structure 1140 interfaces with the heater kit. Given the curved/bent shape of the mounting shield 1102, there may be gaps between the mounting shield 1102 and heater kit within the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 when the kit is installed. The cover structure 1140 serves to provide coverage for these gaps. Using the cover structure 1140 instead of raising the height of the mounting shield 1102 provides additional space for the heater kit and/or other components within the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100.

The embodiments shown in FIGS. 11-15, the mounting shield 1102 includes three distinct surfaces (a first surface 1106, second surface 1108, and third surface 1110. The surfaces are angled relative to one another (shown more clearly in FIG. 14) to increase the distance between each of the surface and the blower 1104 to reduce the impact of the mounting shield 1102 on the airflow generated by the blower 1104. It should be noted that this specific configuration is merely exemplary, and the mounting shield 1102 may be configured with any other number of surfaces. Each of the surfaces may also be any other size and/or shape, and the overall size and/or shape of the mounting shield 1102 may vary. In some instances, the mounting shield 1102 may be a single surface, rather than including multiple, distinct surfaces provided at different angles relative to one another. Any of the electronic components (for example, the motor controller, unit controller, etc.) of the heating and/or cooling appliance 1100 may be mounted to any of these (or other) surfaces). The mounting shield 1102 may also include one or more cutouts (for example, cutout 1112, etc.) for cable routing purposes. For example, FIG. 11 shows a cable 1114 that is routed through the cutout 1112 of the mounting shield 1102. Shown more clearly in FIGS. 13 and 15, the mounting shield 1102 may include one or more fastener apertures (for example, fastener apertures 1130, 1132, 1134, 1136, etc.) that provide locations where electronic components may be mounted to the mounting shield 1102 (by inserting fasteners through corresponding fastener apertures on the electronic components and the fastener apertures on the mounting shield 1102). It should be noted that although the figures show a specific number of fastener apertures that are located at specific positions on the mounting shield 1102, this is merely illustrative and not intended to limit the configuration of the mounting shield 1102. Any other number of fastener apertures of varying size and/or position may be included.

Although embodiments have been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as illustrative forms of implementing the embodiments. Conditional language, such as, among others, “can,” “could,” “might,” or “may,” unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments could include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements, and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements, and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without user input or prompting, whether these features, elements, and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment.