Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

D/N: WAS-2362EN

Introduction
With average world temperatures rising annually, air conditioners have become an indispensable
part of our lives. Also as people living standards improve due to rapid economic development, the
household air conditioner industry has seen good opportunities for rapid growth. No matter whether
the air conditioner type is wall-mounted or portable, the basic requirements of all air conditioner
types are to implement real-time and precise temperature control as well as have increased comfort
levels, cost control and energy saving using reliable products which use efficient algorithms.
Holtek’s solution for inverter air conditioner indoor units is to include a main control board and a
display board. The main control board for the indoor unit uses a resource rich Holtek MCU, the
HT66F2372, which has multiple functions and communication interfaces to implement control of
the air conditioner indoor unit. The display board driver IC uses the HT16D31B, which can drive
up to 72 LEDs with adjustable brightness and which can communicate with the main controller
MCU through its I2C interface. This solution supports two types of indoor motors, BLDC and PG,
and provides many communication protocols for inverter indoor and outdoor units. It can
implement multiple functions such as cooling, dehumidification, fan, heating, automatic mode,
electric auxiliary heating, self-cleaning, etc.

Figure 1. System Block Diagram

Application Areas
Household wall-mounted/portable air conditioners

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Solution Features
1. Supports various air-conditioner types: multiple household air conditioner types.
This solution supports household wall-mounted/portable air conditioners as well as single
cooling/cooling and heating air conditioners. It covers most types of household air conditioner
functions on the market such as cooling, heating, self-cleaning, electric auxiliary heating, etc.
Additionally, several communication protocols for inverter air conditioner indoor and outdoor
units are provided for users to implement in their development.

2. Precise room temperature control: temperature control algorithm, increased usage comfort level
and reduction in energy consumption.
The software includes a temperature control algorithm which can precisely control the
compressor frequency based on temperature differences and their change rates. This ensures
that the room temperature remains within a comfortable range. Additionally, during operation
the compressor will rarely continually turn on and off thus reducing energy consumption.

3. Holtek workshop: reduces development learning threshold and shortens development cycles.
Holtek’s air conditioner workshop will assist with the rapid design of air conditioners. This
workshop supports a main controller MCU, the HT66F2372, which is used in this solution.
Users can easily input their air conditioner parameter settings and configurations using simple
point-and-click operations. Additionally, Holtek has also provided an IR remote controller
workshop to facilitate development of IR remote controllers.

Operating Principles
When the air conditioner is powered on, the main indoor unit controller MCU will detect the room
temperature and the room duct temperature. Based on the selected operating mode, the MCU will
then activate the indoor fan, air deflector and electric auxiliary heating to operate. It will then send
mode instructions to drive the outdoor unit main controller. When the outdoor unit compressor is
activated, then according to the temperature control algorithm, the indoor unit main controller MCU
will control the compressor speed to implement low-power operations. The temperature will be
maintained within a comfortable range.

Figure 2

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Functional Description

Solution Characteristics
 Rated voltage/frequency: AC 220V/50Hz

 Rated cooling input power: 810W(80~1650W)

 Rated cooling capacity: 3500W

 Rated heating input power: 1325W(80~1850W)

 Rated heating capacity: 5000W

 Standby power: 3W

 Protection functions
 Compressor protection
 Room temperature too high/too low protection
 Evaporator high/low temperature protection
 No indoor fan speed feedback protection
 Temperature sensor failure protection
 Communication failure protection for indoor and outdoor units

 Communication interfaces

 Main controller MCU and display board use the I2C communication protocol

 Indoor and outdoor units use a customised communication protocol

Solution Function

The actual product PCBA is shown below.

Left/Right Sweeping Interface
Up/Down Sweeping Interface
Electric Auxiliary Heating N/L Interface
Emergency
AC 220V Live Line Key
Input Terminal Main Controller MCU HT66F2372

AC 220V Neutral Interface Connecting

Line Input Terminal Display Board and Indoor
Unit Main Control Board
PG Motor
Interface
Reserved UART
Communication
BLDC Motor Interface
Interface

Duct Temperature NTC

Indoor and Interface and Resistor
Outdoor Unit Divider Selection
Communication
Interface

Room Temperature NTC Interface

BLDC Motor Driver Daughter and Resistor Divider Selection
Board Female Header Programming Interface
Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication Daughter Simulated Load
Board Female Header Communication Interface

Figure 3. Inverter Main Control Board

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication

Daughter Board Pin Header
Figure 4. Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication Daughter Board

BLDC Motor Driver

Daughter Board Pin Header
Figure 5. BLDC Motor Driver Daughter Board

Interface Connecting Display Board

IR Receiving Diode and Internal Unit Main Control Board Driver IC HT16D31B

Figure 6. Display Board

IR Transmitting Programming
Diode Interface

LCD
Interface Infrared Remote
Controller MCU
HT67F2452

Buttom
Interface

Figure 7. Infrared Remote Controller Board

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

This product is an inverter air conditioner with a rated cooling capacity of 3500W (1.5 horsepower)
which is suitable for use in rooms in normal households. It provides seven modes which include
cooling, dehumidification, fan, heating, automation, electric auxiliary heating and self-cleaning. In
terms of human-unit interaction, users can use an infrared remote controller to implement
operations such as turn-on/off, temperature setting, mode switch, fan speed selection and air
deflector control.

Cooling mode
In the cooling mode, when the air conditioner has detected that the room temperature is greater than
the user-set temperature, the compressor will operate at a higher speed and the indoor fan will
operate at Level 1~3 or it will operate in the automatic mode based on the remote controller setup.
When the room temperature approaches the set temperature, the compressor will operate at a lower
speed to maintain a relatively constant room temperature.

Dehumidification Mode
In the dehumidification mode, when the difference between the room temperature and the set
temperature is greater than or equal to 4°C, the compressor will operate at a higher speed and the
indoor fan will operate at a speed of Level 2. When the temperature difference is between -4°C and
4°C (excluding -4°C and 4°C), the compressor will operate at a lower speed and the indoor fan will
operate at a speed of Level 1. These operation actions can quickly reduce the room humidity.

Fan Mode
In the fan mode, the indoor fan operates at a speed of Level 1~3 or will operate in the automatic
mode based on the remote controller settings, while the compressor is disabled.

Heating Mode
In the heating mode, when the air conditioner has detected that the room temperature is lower than
the user-set temperature, the compressor will operate at a higher speed and the indoor fan will
operate at a speed of Level 1~3 or operate in the automatic mode. There is an exception that if the
evaporator temperature is less than 30°C, the indoor fan will operate at a breeze level. When the
room temperature is greater than the set temperature, the compressor will operate at a lower speed
to maintain a relatively constant room temperature.

Automatic Mode
In the automatic mode, the air conditioner automatically determines whether to operate in the
cooling, fan or heating mode based on the room temperature. If the room temperature is less than
23°C, it will enter the heating mode. If the room temperature is between 23°C and 28°C (including
23°C and 28°C), it will enter the fan mode. If the room temperature is greater than 28°C, it will
enter the cooling mode.

Electric Auxiliary Heating Mode

In the heating mode, the electric auxiliary heating mode is enabled to accelerate the heating process
and implement rapid heating.

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Self-cleaning Mode
In the cooling or the dehumidification mode, when the self-cleaning mode is enabled, the evaporator
and condenser will work together to generate condensate water and allow it to quickly flow down
to wash away any dust on their surfaces.

Operational Description
This solution uses an infrared remote controller to operate the air conditioner. When the power
button of the infrared remote controller is pressed, the air conditioner will enter the cooling,
dehumidification, fan, heating, or automatic mode based on the selected mode on the remote
controller. In addition to using the remote controller to operate the air conditioner, the emergency
key on the air conditioner indoor unit can also be used to turn it on.

 Emergency key description

In the absence of an infrared remote controller, the air conditioner can be controlled by pressing
the emergency key. When the air conditioner is powered on, if the emergency key on the main
control board of the inverter air conditioner is pressed for the first time, it will operate in the
automatic mode. If the button is pressed for a second time, it will operate in the cooling mode
with a set temperature of 26°C. If pressed for a third time, it will stop.

 Display board indicator description

When the display board has displayed the set temperature, it can display the room temperature by
pressing the “Light” button on the infrared remote controller once. If pressed again it will display
the duct temperature. If pressed for a third time it will display the compressor driver frequency. It
will redisplay the set temperature by pressing the button a fourth time. Additionally, if the air
conditioner has malfunctioned, the display board will display the corresponding fault codes.
Fault Code Description Fault Code Description
E1 Room temperature NTC fault E2 Evaporator NTC fault
E7 Indoor and outdoor unit communication fault E14 Indoor fan speed fault
F6 Outdoor environment NTC fault F7 Condenser NTC fault
F25 Outdoor extractor NTC fault
Table 1. Inverter Air Conditioner Main Fault Code Description

Solution Design Description

The inverter air conditioner indoor unit is composed of two parts, the inverter air conditioner main
control board and the display board. The inverter air conditioner main control board consists of a
switching power supply circuit, HT66F2372 MCU core circuit, communication circuit, indoor fan
and air deflector driver circuit, temperature sampling circuit, infrared receiving circuit, buzzer
driver circuit and relay driver circuit. Among these functional units, the indoor fan driver circuit
and the communication circuit are connected to the main control board using adapter daughter
boards. The display board is composed of an infrared receiving circuit and an LED driver circuit.

When the display board has received instructions from the infrared remote controller and sends the
instructions back to the main control board, the main controller MCU will determine how to drive

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the indoor fan, air deflector and other components based on the different modes as well as the
current detected duct and room temperature. The main controller MCU communicates with the
display board driver IC using the I2C interface to drive the display board to display the
corresponding target temperature or the room environmental temperature. Using a customised
communication protocol for the indoor and outdoor units, the main controller MCU sends
instructions to the outdoor main control board to drive the outdoor fan and compressor. When the
indoor or outdoor unit has malfunctioned, the display panel can also display the corresponding fault
codes for any abnormal conditions.

Hardware Description
NTC1
F1 5D-7
BR1
DB207S
ACL T3.15AL250V L1 VDC D1 12V U1 5V
MOV1 C3 Vin Vout
MYN15-621K 0.1uF/275V R3 GND
R2 35mH C2 SS510
ACN C5 330K
10nF/630V L7805
C1 R1
0.1uF/275V 340K/2W
ACN 473/275V 100K/2W
E3
100uF/450V E4 E1
C4 680uF/25V C6 N.C
12V T1 104 104 E2
U3 N.C
R5 100R R4 1R5 D2
1 8
S/OCP D/ST
2 7 RS1M
BR D/ST
DZ1 3
GND D4 CY1
R6
1N4741A/11V 4 FB/OLP VCC
5 4.7nF
U4 47R
A6069H E8 ES1J
U2 15V
R7 47uF/50V D3
E7 1K C8 Vin Vout VDC
100uF/25V 103 ES1J
GND E5
EL817B E6 C7 100uF/25V
220uF/63V 78M15 104
P4 CY2
L2 4.7nF
220uH T2
RC51
T1 12V
DIS
U8 C13 R35 10K 5V GND
C 471
C9 R39 5.1K 5V R37
T1 R38
1uF/450V 5V PD0/INT2 IR 1K
ACN AVDD 100R
VDD PC5 SCL BUZZER
R42 R43 PG_FAN 5V E9 PC4 SDA
C11
47uF/25V
104 PD3 COM3 Q1
150K 150K 5V VSS
D8 AVSS PD4 COM2 9013
R44 R45 R47
U10 PD5 COM1 R41
10K
R48 1K PD6 COM0 5.1K
150K 150K R46
RS1M 10K PA5/INT3 ACL
C19
101 D9 PE2
RS1M R49 1K Q2 HEAT_L
EL817B
9013 C20 F2
102
R50 U6 SWING-LR
C21 R27 1K T15AL250V
10K
102 PF3 1B 1C 5
B1 R28 1K 4 K3
8MHz PF2 2B 2C 3 SJ-S-112DM
PB6/OSC1 R29 1K 2
R20 PF1 3B 3C 1
100R
PB7/OSC2 R32 1K 12V
12V D7
PF0 4B 4C
R33 1K
5V PE4 5B 5C HEAT_N ACN
5V
6B 6C K1
R34 1K
R21 R24 R26 PD2/AN10 SJ-S-112DM
8.06K/1% 15K/1% PE3 7B 7C
20K/1% R22 R23 R25
8.06K/1% 20K/1% 3.3K/1% P6 5V R14 1K E COM 12V
5V PC3 12V
ULN2003A C12 D5
FANFb PA3/INT1 R17 1K 104
P3 InFAN PB2/PTP3 PC2
P2 L_OUT ACL
R31 510R GND R18 1K
1 R30 510R PC1 K2
1
2 R19 MPY-S-112-A
C16 C17 2 PD1/AN9 1K
ROOM E11 104 104 PC0
TUBE
10uF/25V C14 C15 5V UART1
E10 104 104 12V
10uF/25V 5V D6
PF7/TX1 TX
15V P5 PF6/RX1/TX1 RX
5V GND 5V
1 5V P7
FG 15V 1 5
2 ICPCK 5V U5 COM
Vsp Vsp 2 PA2/ICPCK SWING-UL
3 ICPDA PA7 TX 4
15V 15V FG R36 3 PA0/ICPDA COM
4 10K 4 PA6/INT0 RX 4B 4C 5 3
GND1 GND1 L_OUT
5 GND 4 2
VDC VDC R40 OCDS 5V UART2 5B 5C 3
PC7/TX2 ACN 1
PE1 2 ACN
BLDC FAN PC6/RX2/TX2 5V
510R 6B 6C 1 P1
HT66F2372 TX
S1
C18 RX 7B 7C
104 GND
E COM 12V
ULN2003A C12
104

Figure 8. Inverter Main Control Board Schematic Diagram

1. EMI circuit: The fuse, F1, will blow when the current is too high, thus protecting the subsequent
circuits. MOV1 is a varistor, whose resistance will rapidly reduce if it encounters any voltage
spikes when the power grid generates high voltage surges or if other pulse spikes are present.
L1 is used to suppress common mode interference signals in the power grid and suppress the
effects of the air conditioner on the power grid. The X capacitors are connected before and after
the inductor to suppress differential mode interference.

2. Switching power supply circuit: the 220V AC is converted using a switched power supply to
generate two groups of voltages. One group output is approximately 12V, while the other output
is approximately 18~22V. The 12V voltage is regulated to obtain a 5V voltage, which is used

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

to power the HT66F2372 MCU, display board and other peripheral circuits. The 12V supply is
mainly used to power the buzzer, Darlington transistors, relays, etc. The other voltage group is
regulated to obtain a 15V voltage, which is used to power the BLDC motor driver pins. The
BLDC motor is powered by a 310V DC voltage generated after the AC 220V is rectified and
filtered.

3. Air deflector and relay driver circuit: four I/O pins are used to control a Darlington transistor
which drives the air deflector. One I/O pin is used to control two relays to drive the PTC. One
I/O pin is used to control a relay to supply power to the outdoor unit.

4. Temperature sampling circuit: an outdoor NTC temperature sensor is connected to the circuit.
The sensor signal passes through a divider resistance before being input to the MCU A/D
sampling pin. The MCU will determine the actual temperature based on the sampled A/D values
to control the air conditioner operation.

5. Indoor and outdoor unit communication circuit: this circuit is connected to the main control
board using an adapter daughter board, as shown below. The indoor unit main controller MCU
communicates with the outdoor unit main controller using the UART interface. Therefore the
outdoor unit can be driven along with the specific driven outdoor unit components such as the
outdoor fan, four-way valve, compressor, etc.

COM D1

5V
RS1M

U1
EL817B

R1
330R

Q1 R2 4.7K
9013

R3
10K
5V

D2 R4 5V P2
RS1M 10K
5V
R5 4.7K TX
R6 RX
2.2K GND
C1 C2
104
104
U2
EL817B
R7
1K D3
ACN
R8 5.1K

Figure 9. Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication Daughter Board Schematic Diagram

6. BLDC motor driver and feedback circuit: this circuit is also connected to the main control board
using an adapter daughter board, as shown below. The BLDC motor is driven by a PWM signal
with a frequency of 4kHz. The main control board MCU adjusts the speed by regulating the
duty cycle of the PWM output signal. The indoor fan has an integrated Hall speed feedback
circuit. The MCU calculates the current fan speed based on the received feedback signal
frequency, thus implementing closed loop speed control.

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5V

R1
10K

15V
R2 1K

U1
EL817B C1
15V 102 5V
R3 1K
15V 5V
Vsp FANFb
15V R4 5V InFAN
FG
GND1 GND
5.1K U2 BLDC Driver
BLDC Driver R5
1.8K EL817B

R6 220R
DZ1 C2 R7
N.C E1
104 47uF/25V 3.3K

Figure 10. BLDC Motor Driver Daughter Board Schematic Diagram

U1
5V
VDD CA0
D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7
LEDVDD
C2 C1
104 104
VSS/LEDVSS
Ten Digits
AD CA1
D8 D9 D10 D11 D12 D13 D14
5V

R3 R2 Unit Digits
10K 10K
CA2
D15 D16 D17 D18 D19 D20 D21
SDA
P1
SDA SCL
5V REC1 Decimal Digits
SCL R1 180R 3 CA3
IR VCC
5V 5V C4 C3 2 D22 D23 D24 D25 D26 D27 D28
47uF/16V 104 GND
GND
IIC/REC R5 100R
1
OUT PTC Do Not Display ECO
C5 IR CA4
N.C
D29 D30 D31 D32 D33

Power WIFI Point

CA5

CA6

CA7
HT16D31B

Figure 11. Display Board Schematic Diagram

1. Display board LED driver circuit: an HT16D31B device is used to drive the LEDs. The inverter
air conditioner indoor unit main controller MCU is used to drive the HT16D31B using I2C
communication, thereby controlling the LEDs to display the air conditioner temperature, fault
codes and so on.

2. Infrared receiving circuit: this circuit is used to receive instructions from the infrared remote
controller which will be transmitted to the main controller MCU of the inverter air conditioner
indoor unit. This circuit is an important part for implementing human/unit interaction.

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

5V

U1 R2
LCD1 10K C2 C3
104 476
PD5/SEG19
PD4/SEG18 C4 104
LCD Panel
PD3/SEG17 PB3/RES
PD2/SEG16
PD1/SEG15 C5 104
PD0/SEG14 V1
PC7/SEG13
PC6/SEG12 C6 104
PC5/SEG11 PLCD

5V
C7 104
PB4/V2
PC2/SEG2
D1
PC1/SEG1 PB5/C1
C8 C1
PC0/SEG0 104 R1 47uF/10V
PB6/C2 10R
PF0/COM0

PF1/COM1 PB2/REMDRV

PF2/COM2
PE1 K4
K1 K2 K3
PF3/COM3 ON/OFF MODE + -
PE7/COM4 PE2
K5 K6 K7 K8
ENERGY SPEED Refrigeration Heating
PE6/COM5
PE3 K9 K12
P1 5V K10 K11
4
ICPCK Up and down sweeping Left and right sweeping MUTE POWERFUL
3 PA2/ICPCK PE4
ICPDA
2 PA0/ICPDA
1 K13 K14 K15 K16

PA6 Drying/Auxiliary Heating

TIMING LIGHT SLEEP
PA4
5V
PA5
VDD
VSS PA3
VCC

GND
HT67F2452

Figure 12. Infrared Remote Controller Board Schematic Diagram

When the infrared instructions have been sent to the air conditioner using rubber buttons on the
infrared remote controller, the LCD screen will display the status of the currently sent settings, such
as the air conditioner operating mode, target temperature, fan speed level, etc.

Layout and Hardware Considerations

For the inverter air conditioner main control board, several layout considerations should be noted.

1. The filter capacitors should be located close to the MCU and should be placed as close as
possible to the VDD and VSS pins. If there are filter capacitors on the path of peripheral circuits,
it will be necessary to ensure that the routing passes through the capacitors to filter out noise.

2. The L/N routings should be thickened due to the large operating current of the air conditioner.

3. The layout of low and high power electronic sections should be separated by a KEEPOUT layer.

Figure 13. Inverter Main Control Board PCB Layout Front and Back View

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Figure 14. PCB Layout Front and Back Views of Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication Daughter Board

Figure 15. PCB Layout Front and Back Views of BLDC Motor Driver Daughter Board

Figure 16. PCB Layout Front and Back Views of Display Board

Figure 17. PCB Layout Front and Back Views of Infrared Remote Controller Board

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PCB BOM List

Table 2. Inverter Main Control Board BOM List

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Table 3. Indoor and Outdoor Unit Communication Daughter Board BOM List

Table 4. BLDC Motor Driver Daughter Board BOM List

Table 5. Display Board BOM List

Table 6. Infrared Remote Controller Board BOM List

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 Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit

Software Description
In this solution, the air conditioner indoor unit software is developed using the air conditioner
workshop. A brief description of this software will be introduced below. For detailed information
about the air conditioner workshop, refer to the “Holtek official website → MCU Tools →
Development Platform”.

MCU Resource Usage Status

The following table provides a description of the software resources.
Item HT66F2372
VDD 5V
Operating Frequency 8MHz
ROM 8769×16 is used, percentage: 26%
RAM 375×8 is used, percentage: 12%
Stack 8 levels are used
WDT 125ms
Timer Time Base 0 (256µs)
PTM0 (80µs)
PTM1 (125µs)
PTM2 (2000µs)
PTM3: outputs a 4kHz frequency PWM drive signal
INT INT0: indoor and outdoor unit communication
INT1: speed feedback
INT2: infrared decoding
INT3: zero crossing detection
UART 2 UART1: communicates with the simulated load
Other Peripherals 1 I/O: buzzer control
1 I/O: tact switch detection
4 I/O: drives the stepper motor
2 I/O: display board control
1 I/O: outdoor unit power supply relay control
1 I/O: PTC relay control
AN10: reads the NTC value of the room temperature
AN9: reads the NTC value of the room duct temperature

Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit Main Program Flow Description

The system configures a timer to generate events with different time intervals to ensure that multiple
tasks are implemented in different time periods or in parallel. PTM1 executes an interrupt every
125µs to generate events with time intervals of 5ms, 10ms, 100ms, 500ms, 1s, etc.

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Start

System initialisation

Y
Infrared is received ? Operating mode update

Is the timing up to Y
Air deflector process Emergency key scan
5ms ?

Is the timing up to Y
Buzzer process
10ms ?

Is the timing up to Y
Emergency key process
100ms ?

Internal fan process

Temperature sampling

Fault process

Internal and external

unit communication

Is the timing up to Y
Display update process
500ms ?

Y Communication
Is the timing up to 1s ? Mode switch process Turn-off process
fault detection

Is the timing up to Y Timed turn-on/off

Sleep mode process
1min ? process

Figure 18. Inverter Main Control Board Main Program Flow Chart

 Operating mode update: when receiving instructions from the remote controller, the air
conditioner indoor unit will enter the corresponding operating mode (cooling/dehumidification/
fan/heating/automatic).
 Air deflector process: the air deflector is driven by a stepper motor to implement the up/down
sweep movement. It can be fixed to a certain angle or driven to swing back and forth.
 Emergency key process: when the air conditioner is turned on, it will operate in the automatic
mode when the emergency key is pressed for the first time. It will operate in the cooling mode
with a set temperature of 26°C, when users press the emergency key for the second time or will
be turned off, when users press the emergency key for the third time.

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 Indoor fan process: the fan speed is adjusted to the set speed based on the user settings or it can
be adjusted automatically according to the difference between the room temperature and the set
temperature to accelerate the cooling/heating dissipation of the room heat exchanger.
 Temperature sampling: temperature measurement includes room temperature measurement and
evaporator temperature measurement. The MCU uses the difference between the room
temperature and the set temperature and the temperature difference change rate as the main
reference for compressor control. In the cooling mode, when the room temperature is greater
than the set temperature, the HT66F2372 will send a compressor start instruction to the outdoor
unit to enable the compressor to start cooling. When the room temperature is lower than the set
temperature, the indoor unit main controller MCU will send instructions to the outdoor unit to
reduce the compressor speed and maintain a relatively constant room temperature. The
evaporator temperature measurement is a reference for determining if the system is operating
normally. If the evaporator temperature is too low during cooling or too high during heating, the
evaporator temperature measurement will trigger the system to enter the protection status to
protect the system from damage.
 Fault process: when the indoor unit has malfunctioned, the main controller MCU will stop the
indoor unit load operation. At the same time, the MCU will send instructions to stop the outdoor
unit operation. When the outdoor unit has malfunctioned, it will send instructions to the indoor
unit to stop working.
 Indoor and outdoor unit communication: the indoor unit sends information such as room
environmental temperature, evaporator temperature, compressor target speed and indoor unit
fault codes to the outdoor unit. This allows the outdoor unit to drive the compressor and outdoor
fan and for the four-way valve to operate. The outdoor unit sends information such as outdoor
environmental temperature, condenser temperature, actual compressor speed and outdoor unit
fault codes to the indoor unit. Now the indoor unit can better adjust the air conditioner
compressor speed and protect the complete air conditioner.
 Mode switch process: when the air conditioner is executing mode changes, the indoor unit main
controller MCU will send the current operating mode instruction to the outdoor unit and
implement functions for compressor protection, four-way valve protection and so on. At the
same time, it will send appropriate frequency instructions based on the temperature control
algorithm to drive the outdoor compressor.
 Turn-off process: when the air conditioner receives a turn-off instruction, the indoor unit main
controller MCU will send a turn-off instruction to the outdoor unit. When the air conditioner
operates in the heating mode, the four-way valve, indoor fan and stepper motor will be turned
off in delayed time.

Workshop Parameter Setting Description

 Buzzer setting: selects the I/O port, driver frequency and prompt tone duration time according
to actual requirements.

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 Indoor fan setting: selects an indoor fan drive type, PG motor or BLDC motor. Users can also
select the I/O port for driving the fan and the feedback I/O pin as well as having the ability to
adjust the three-level speed values of the indoor fan.
 Air deflector setting: based on the specific stepping motor specification, users can select
parameters such as the step angle, deceleration ratio, opening angle, sweeping angle, etc. The
workshop supports single beat driving, double beat driving and single/double-beat driving
modes. Users can modify the driving I/O pins based on their main control board.
 Temperature measurement setting: users can implement room temperature measurement and
evaporator temperature measurement. Several types of temperature sensors are supported.
 Display setting: users can select a driver IC, the HT16D31B or the 74HC164, according to their
actual needs.
 I/O setting: users can modify some I/O pin configurations based on the actual PCBA, such as
outdoor unit power supply, electric auxiliary heating, emergency key, etc.
 Other settings: users can set the display contents of major fault codes and modify some
temperature control rules for the compressor to turn-on/off.
Note: after selecting the air conditioner type and communication protocol, it should be noted that
the default value of each parameter in the setting interface have corresponded to the development
board of the selected air conditioner type. Therefore, there is no need to change the setting
parameters when using the development board.

Workshop Software Test Description

1. Use a type-C cable to connect the simulated load board to the PC and enable the Monitoring
Mode under the “Aircon Testing” section in the workshop software.

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2. Select the Monitoring mode

 In the list on the left of the software interface, there are many parameters such as the current
air conditioner operating mode, room temperature, duct temperature, indoor fan speed, etc.
The upper curve represents the target and current compressor speeds. It should be noted that
the current speed can be detected only when the outdoor unit is connected. The lower curve
represents the change curves of the set temperature, room temperature and duct temperature.
 By clicking on the data export icon, users can export the operating status parameters of the
air conditioner at different moments during the measurement process.

3. Select the test mode

 In addition to viewing the current state of the air conditioner, users can modify the air
conditioner operating mode, indoor fan speed, simulated room/duct NTC temperature, etc.,
using the PC. When the “Send” button is clicked, the air conditioner will operate according
to the parameters.

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 When the “Advanced” button is clicked, users can import an Excel document and customise
the parameters, such as the temperature change curve and operating mode of the air
conditioner in each time period.

Other Function Description

Based on the infrared instructions, different modes have different temperature control rules. The
functions are introduced below.
Function Name AutoModeFun()
Function Automatic mode function
Input u16_RoomTempAvrg: room temperature
Output N/A
In the automatic mode, the MCU will change the operating modes based on the room
temperature. When the room temperature is less than 23°C, the air conditioner will enter
Description the heating mode. If the room temperature is between 23°C and 28°C (including 23°C and
28°C), it will enter the fan mode. If the room temperature is greater than 28°C, it will enter
the cooling mode.
Table 7. Automatic Mode Function
Function Name ColdModeFun()
Function Cooling mode function
u16_RoomTempAvrg: room temperature
Input
COLD_COMP_OFF_TEMP: compressor turn-off threshold
Output N/A
In the cooling mode, when the air conditioner has detected that the room environment
temperature is greater than the user-set temperature, the compressor will be turned on at a
higher frequency based on the difference between the current room temperature and the
Description set temperature. After this, the compressor frequency will be adjusted every 10 seconds
according to the change rate of the room temperature. When the target temperature is
greater than the room temperature and the absolute value of the temperature difference is
greater than the threshold value, the compressor will stop.
Table 8. Cooling Mode Function

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Function Name HeatModeFun()

Function Heating mode function
u16_RoomTempAvrg: room temperature
Input
HEAT_COMP_OFF_TEMP: compressor turn-off threshold
Output N/A
In the heating mode, when the air conditioner has detected that the room environment
temperature is lower than the user-set temperature, the compressor will be turned on at a
higher frequency based on the difference between the current room temperature and the
Description set temperature. After this, the compressor frequency will be adjusted every 10 seconds
according to the change rate of the room temperature. When the room temperature is
greater than the target temperature and the absolute value of the temperature difference is
greater than the threshold value, the compressor will stop.
Table 9. Heating Mode Function

Function Name DryModeFun()

Function Dehumidification mode function
u16_RoomTempAvrg: room temperature
Input
DRY_COMP_OFF_TEMP: threshold value of compressor turned off
Output N/A
In the dehumidification mode, if the difference between the room temperature and the set
temperature is greater than the threshold value, the compressor will operate at a fixed
speed. The compressor speed is related to the fan speed level of the indoor fan. When the
Description
indoor fan operates at the speed of Level 1, the compressor will operate at a frequency of
30Hz. When it operates at the speed of Level 2, the compressor will operate at a frequency
of 60Hz.
Table 10. Dehumidification Mode Function

Function Name FanModeFun()

Function Fan mode function
u8_FANIndex: fan level
Input
u16_RoomTempAvrg: room temperature
Output N/A
In the fan mode, the indoor fan operates at a speed Level 1~3 or in the automatic mode
Description
based on the remote controller settings. At the same time, the compressor will stop.
Table 11. Fan Mode Function

Infrared Remote Controller Setting Description

When developing the infrared remote controller, users can use the Holtek infrared remote controller
workshop to customise an infrared protocol. The program can then be generated with a single click.
The infrared remote controller can be used to control the air conditioner operation. Its infrared
construction format is shown below.
Infrared Instruction Encoding Format (LSB)
Start Code 40-bit Data Code Connection Code Inverted 40-bit Data Code End Code
Table 12. Infrared Instruction Encoding Format

The level specification is shown below.

Start Code 9ms low level +4.5ms high level
Connection Code 0.6ms low level+20ms high level
Data Code “0” 0.6ms low level +0.6ms high level
Data Code“1” 0.6ms low level +1.6ms high level
End Code 0.6ms low level
Table 13. Infrared Instruction Encoding Level Format

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The specific infrared instruction encoding is shown below.

15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Timing data Timing Temperature data On/off Mode
000000: 0h, 000001: 0.5h 00: timing 0000: 16 0: off 000: automation
000010: 1h, 000011: 1.5h disabled 0001: 17 1: on 001: cooling
000100: 2h, 000101: 2.5h 01: timing off 0010: 18 010: dehumidification
000110: 3h, 000111: 3.5h 10: timing on 0011: 19 011: fan
001000: 4h, 001001: 4.5h 0100: 20 100: heating
001010: 5h, 001011: 5.5h 0101: 21
001100: 6h, 001101: 6.5h 0110: 22
001110: 7h, 001111: 7.5h 0111: 23
010000: 8h, 010001: 8.5h 1000: 24
010010: 9h, 010011: 9.5h 1001: 25
010100: 10h, 010101: 10.5h 1010: 26
010110: 11h, 010111: 11.5h 1011: 27
011000: 12h, 011001: 12.5h 1100: 28
011010: 13h, 011011: 13.5h 1101: 29
011100: 14h, 011101: 14.5h 1110: 30
011110: 15h, 011111: 15.5h
100000: 16h, 100001: 16.5h
100010: 17h, 100011: 17.5h
100100: 18h, 100101: 18.5h
100110: 19h, 100111: 19.5h
101000: 20h, 101001: 20.5h
101010: 21h, 101011: 21.5h
101100: 22h, 101101: 22.5h
101110: 23h, 101111: 23.5h
110000: 24h

31 20 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16
E joy mode Left/right Up/down Sleep mode Auxiliary heating/drying Light Strong air Fan speed
000: E joy mode sweeping sweeping 000: sleep functions 00: compressor mode 00: automation
disabled 0: off 0: off disabled Heating mode speed 0: off 01: speed I
001: E joy mode 1: on 1: on 001: sleep 1 00: auxiliary heating 01: target 1: on 10: speed II
cooler 010: sleep 2 disabled temperature 11: speed III
010: E joy mode 011: sleep 3 01: auxiliary heating 10: room
cool 100: sleep 4 enabled temperature
011: E joy mode Cooling/dehumidification 11: duct
comfort mode temperature
100: E joy mode 00: drying disabled
warm 01: drying enabled
101: E joy mode
warmer

39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32
Reserved Reserved Reserved Reserved Reserved Self-cleaning Mute Button lock

Table 14. Infrared Encoding Protocol Table

Test Data

Inverter Air Conditioner Indoor Unit Function Test

1. Cooling mode function test

Test environment: room environment temperature: 28±2°C

Air conditioner mode settings: the cooling mode is enabled with a target temperature of 20°C
and fan speed of Level 3
Test method: when the air conditioner operates in the cooling mode, record the current room
temperature, power and compressor speed every 15 minutes.

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Time/Minute
0 15 30
Record
Temperature / °C 28.1 22.3 19.5
Power / W 1300 700 500
Compressor speed / Hz 90 48 30

Note: The operation logic of the air conditioner in the cooling mode is in accordance with the
expected settings.

2. Heating mode function test

Test environment: room environment temperature: 15±2°C

Air conditioner mode settings: the heating mode is enabled with a target temperature of 25°C
and fan speed of Level 3
Test method: when the air conditioner operates in the heating mode, record the current room
temperature, power and compressor speed every 15 minutes.
Time/Minute
0 15 30
Record
Temperature /°C 15.3 22.5 25
Power / W 1450 900 500
Compressor speed / Hz 90 60 45

Note: The operation logic of the air conditioner in the heating mode is in accordance with the
expected settings.

3. Dehumidification mode function test

Test environment: room environment temperature: 26±2°C; relative humidity: 65%±5%

Air conditioner mode settings: the dehumidification mode is enabled with a target temperature
of 20°C and automatic fan speed
Test method: when the air conditioner operates in the dehumidification mode, record the current
room temperature, humidity, compressor speed and indoor fan speed every 15 minutes.
Time/Minute
0 15 30
Record
Temperature / °C 26.1 23.1 21
Humidity / RH% 67% 59% 53%
Compressor speed / Hz 60 30 30
Indoor fan speed Level 2 Level 1 Level 1

Note: The operation logic of the air conditioner in the dehumidification mode is in accordance
with the expected settings.

4. Fan mode function test

Test environment: room environment temperature: 26±2°C

Air conditioner mode settings: the fan mode is enabled
Test method: when the air conditioner operates in the fan mode, change the fan speed level and
record the indoor fan speed. When it is in the automatic mode, change the room temperature
and record the indoor fan speed in different levels.
Use the infrared remote controller and manually switch the fan speed level. The actual speed of
the indoor fan is as follows.
Level
1 2 3
Record
Indoor fan speed / RPM 852 1148 1391

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Use the infrared remote controller, switch into the automatic fan speed level and change the
room temperature. The actual speed of the indoor fan is as follows.
Temperature
20 25 28
Record
Indoor fan speed / RPM 1085 1273 1443

Note: the operation logic of the air conditioner in the fan mode is in accordance with the
expected settings.

Functional Test of Simulated Load and Air Conditioner Workshop

A simulated load is used to simulate changes of the temperature NTC, thereby accelerating the
development and test processes. It can also be connected to a PC and the main control board,
providing a method for monitoring and testing the main control board using the air conditioner
workshop.

Test method: connect the air conditioner main control board to the simulated load and then connect
the load to the PC. Use the air conditioner workshop to view the operating status of the air
conditioner and switch its operating mode using the workshop.

Figure 19. Air Conditioner Workshop Monitoring Mode

Figure 20. Air Conditioner Workshop Test Mode

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EMC Test Results

Test Test Conditions Test result
Item
EFT Test ±4000V 5kHz Pass
CS Test Static/dynamic 10V/150kHz~80MHz Pass
ESD Test Direct contact discharge: 10kV/air discharge: 10kV Pass
Table 15. EMC Test Data

Solution Comparison
Compared to fixed-speed air conditioner solutions, this inverter air conditioner solution provides a
higher degree of comfort and provides more energy savings.
Inverter Air Conditioner
Parameter Fixed-speed Air Conditioner
(This Solution)
Compressor Type Inverter Fixed-speed
Room Temperature Control Status Small fluctuations Large fluctuations
Comfort Level Higher Lower
Power Consumption Lower Higher

Conclusion
This solution has provided a detailed introduction of an inverter air conditioner indoor unit which
uses the HT66F2372 as the main controller MCU. It includes the operating principles of cooling
and heating, hardware description and communication protocols. In terms of functions, it can
implement many common functions of air conditioners on the market, such as cooling, heating,
dehumidification and fan. This solution assists users to simplify and accelerate the design and
development of air conditioners, thereby making the products enter the mass production stage more
quickly.

Reference File
Reference files: HT66F2372 and HT16D31B datasheets

Air conditioner workshop:

https://www.holtek.com/page/detail/dev_plat/Air_Conditioner_Workshop

Infrared remote controller workshop:

https://www.holtek.com/page/detail/dev_plat/IR_Remote_Controller_Workshop

For more information, refer to the Holtek official website: www.holtek.com

Revision and Modification Information

Date Author Issue Modification Information
2023.06.14 王靖鈞 V1.00 First Version

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