Air conditioner with variable displacement compressor and torque controlling means

An air conditioner for air conditioning the interior of a compartment includes a compressor (C) and an electric motor (84). The compressor (C) compresses refrigerant gas and changes the displacement. The electric motor (84) drives the compressor (C). A motor controller (72) rotates the motor (84) at a constant reference speed. A detection device (92) detects information related to the thermal load on the air conditioner. A current sensor (97) detects the value of current supplied to the electric motor. A controller (72) controls the compressor based on the detected thermal load information and the detected current value. The controller (72) computes a target torque of the compressor based on the thermal load information. In accordance with the computed target torque, the controller (72) computes a target current value to be supplied to the electric motor. The controller (72) further controls the displacement of the compressor such that the detected current value matches the target current value.