Air conditioning is one of those product categories that rarely gets ink unless it malfunctions on a summer afternoon. LG is trying to change that perception, and during a visit to its Korea headquarters, the company walked us through a lineup that spans far more than the split unit on your wall. From commercial-grade VRF systems to a cat tower that doubles as an air purifier, here is what LG is actually building.
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Multi V i is the premium VRF product by LG, specifically designed for commercial applications, and it represents a major step away from anything that has come before. The heart of the system is LG’s own Neural Engine, an intelligent machine learning algorithm built directly into the air conditioning unit itself. The system monitors temperature, occupancy, humidity, and energy usage on the fly, and makes automatic adjustments as needed rather than having to rely on a facility manager catching a problem. The system issues warnings before reaching energy threshold levels, making it completely preventative in its approach. According to LG, the Multi V i can deliver improvements of up to 28.3 percent in terms of Energy Efficiency Ratio when compared to previous models. This is a remarkable figure given that small percentage changes are the norm. It uses R-32 refrigerant with a GWP below 1. Its capacity is 6 to 44 tons and comes in single and dual frame modules.
The Therma V, on the other hand, is the AWHP line offered by LG, and its concept is straightforward: harvest heat from outdoor air instead of burning gas or oil. It takes around 20 percent of electrical energy while harvesting the rest of thermal energy from air and LG boasts that it cuts your annual heating expenses by up to 60 percent compared to conventional boilers. The R32 type works at temperatures as low as -25°C through flash injection technology with an output of leaving water at 65°C while the latest generation R290 Monobloc operates down to -15°C, producing leaving water of up to 75°C. Monobloc is essentially a more convenient design for its outdoor unit has been merged together with the indoor one with water connections only, making installation easier than ever before. Both are integrated with ThinQ for easy management and monitoring from anywhere. It may not be the most appealing product to look at but it is precisely what residential heating industry needs to move forward.
The AC system that used cassette was among those systems that provided a quick experience. The cassette AC system is the one with four ways which means it provides air in all directions from the ceiling and it utilizes occupants’ detection sensors that can detect the number of persons present in the room and supply air according to that number as compared to supplying air in constant output without detecting occupancy numbers. What made the system special on that particular day was an aspect related to mechanics where the panel comes down by pressing a button; hence making the filter accessible to clean or change.
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However, where the concept becomes truly intriguing as far as design is concerned is when we talk about PuriCare AeroFurniture. The design principle in this case seems to be that air purifiers do not really need to look like air purifiers. The AeroFurniture unit works as a side table with an embedded wireless charging station in the tabletop itself, hence justifying itself as a component of the room before taking into consideration the actual air purification function. In addition to its other features, the design concept behind this piece makes the product unique, since it allows users to replace the basic tabletop with one that incorporates designs or patterns of their choice.
AeroCatTower makes use of this embedded technology for a different purpose. This is a full-length air purifier that has a heated cushion perch on top for the cat to sit on. It makes use of NanoFiber True HEPA filter capable of filtering all particles from 0.01 micrometres in size and UVnano LED to sanitize fan blades. Through the ThinQ app, it records the weight and duration of rest period of the cat with the help of its built-in scale. The air flow automatically reduces once the cat sits down and increases once he leaves.
Lurking behind it all is ThinQ, LG’s smart home system, which serves as the underlying fabric across the whole HVAC and RAC line. From energy consumption to remote control, filter change alerts, occupancy, and even cat weights: everything goes through one app. There is a vision here for an overarching view of all air management for your house, from the heat pump outside to the cat condo in the living room. And that’s what makes the whole concept cohesive, the more LG appliances you own, the more sense it all makes.
There is certainly one thing LG’s air quality management and HVAC systems portfolio can claim to be doing consistently: it’s getting smarter on a commercial level, it’s becoming more eco-friendly on a residential scale, and it’s just weird enough on a consumer level to stand out.
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