Air conditioner

Abstract

An air conditioner is disclosed. The air conditioner may include a case including an inlet and an outlet formed therein, a blowing fan disposed in the case to blow air from the inlet to the outlet, a heat exchanger disposed in the case to exchange heat with air flowing in the case, a drain pan disposed below the heat exchanger to collect condensed water falling down from the heat exchanger, a drain pump disposed on one side of the drain pan to discharge condensed water collected in the drain pan to the outside of the case, and a water level switch configured to operate when a level of the condensed water reaches a reference level. When the level of the condensed water reaches the reference level, the drain pump is turned on.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An air conditioner, comprising:
 a case comprising an inlet and an outlet formed therein;   a blowing fan disposed in the case to blow air from the inlet to the outlet;   a heat exchanger disposed in the case to exchange heat with air flowing in the case;   a drain pan disposed below the heat exchanger to collect condensed water falling down from the heat exchanger;   a drain pump disposed on one side of the drain pan to discharge condensed water collected in the drain pan to an outside of the case; and   a water level switch configured to operate when a level of the condensed water reaches a reference level, wherein when the level of the condensed water reaches the reference level, the drain pump is turned on.   
     
     
         2 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated at a predetermined speed for a predetermined time period. 
     
     
         3 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated while increasing in speed in a stepwise manner for a predetermined time period. 
     
     
         4 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated at a predetermined speed, and then is turned off when an applied current becomes lower than a reference current value. 
     
     
         5 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated at a predetermined speed, and then is turned off when a motor torque becomes lower than a reference torque value. 
     
     
         6 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated while increasing in speed in a stepwise manner, and then is turned off when an applied current becomes lower than a reference current value. 
     
     
         7 . The air conditioner according to  claim 1 , wherein the drain pump is operated while increasing in speed in a stepwise manner, and then is turned off when a motor torque becomes lower than a reference torque value. case; 
     
     
         8 . An air conditioner, comprising:
 a case comprising an inlet and an outlet formed therein;   a blowing fan disposed in the case to blow air from the inlet to the outlet;   a heat exchanger disposed in the case to exchange heat with air flowing in the a drain pan disposed below the heat exchanger to collect condensed water falling down from the heat exchanger;   a drain pump disposed on one side of the drain pan to discharge condensed water collected in the drain pan to an outside of the case; and   a water level sensor configured to detect a level of the condensed water, wherein when the level of the condensed water reaches the reference level, the drain pump is turned on.   
     
     
         9 . The air conditioner according to  claim 8 , wherein the drain pump is operated at different speeds depending on water levels detected by the water level sensor. 
     
     
         10 . The air conditioner according to  claim 8 , wherein the reference level is a minimum water level detectable by the water level sensor. 
     
     
         11 . The air conditioner according to  claim 8 , wherein the reference level is 0 mm or more.