JP3631805B2 - Automatic bath appliance with hopper device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
[Industrial application fields]
TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an automatic bath appliance with a hopper device having functions of bathing, hot water supply, and automatic hot water filling.
[0002]
[Prior art]
FIG. 5 shows a system configuration of an automatic bath as a conventional general automatic bath appliance with a hopper device. This type of automatic bath has a reheating mechanism 1, a hot water supply mechanism 2, and a hopper device 3.
[0003]
Reheating mechanism 1 is provided with a circulation passage 5 reheating is connected via a circulation bracket on the side wall of the bathtub 4, this reheating recirculation channel 5, the circulation pump 6 for circulating driving the hot water in the bathtub 4 And a reheating heat exchanger 7 that heats and recirculates the circulating hot water.
[0004]
On the other hand, the hot water supply mechanism 2 includes a hot water supply heat exchanger 8, a water supply pipe 10 is connected to the inlet side of the hot water supply heat exchanger 8, and a hot water supply passage 11 is connected to the outlet side of the hot water supply heat exchanger 8. . The water supply pipe 10 is provided with a flow rate sensor 12 for detecting a water supply flow rate, the hot water supply passage 11 is provided with a water amount control valve 13 for controlling the amount of hot water supply water, and a hot water supply tap 35 is provided at the distal end side of the passage 11. It has been.
[0005]
The hot water supply passage 11 and the recirculation circulation passage 5 are connected to each other by a pouring passage 14 for filling the hot water, and the hopper device 3 is provided in the pouring passage 14.
[0006]
The hopper device 3 functions as a pouring solenoid valve 15 that functions as a pouring control valve, an edge cut valve 16, a drain tank 17, a negative pressure shut-off valve 18, check valves 20, 21, and an edge cut drain valve. A drain electromagnetic valve 22 is included.
[0007]
The pouring solenoid valve 15 is provided upstream of the pouring passage 14, that is, closer to the hot water supply passage 11, and an edge cut valve 16 is provided downstream of the pouring solenoid valve 15. When the hot water filling is performed by opening the pouring electromagnetic valve 15, the edge cut valve 16 closes the valve hole 25 by the water pressure of the hot water filling, and when the hot water filling stops, the urging force of the spring 26 is used. The valve hole 25 is open.
[0008]
A negative pressure closing valve 18 is provided downstream of the edge cut valve 16, and a check valve 20 is further provided downstream of the negative pressure closing valve 18. The negative pressure closing valve 18 normally has a function of closing the valve by the urging force of the spring 19 and preventing air from entering the pouring passage 14 from the outside. The check valve 20 prevents the sewage on the recirculation circulation path 5 side from flowing back to the hot water supply path 11 side. A pressure sensor 27 that functions as a water level sensor that detects the water level of the bathtub 4 by water pressure is connected to the pouring passage 14 on the downstream side of the check valve 20.
[0009]
A drainage tank 17 is provided below the edge cut valve 16 to store water drained when the pouring electromagnetic valve 15 is opened and closed. The inside of the drain tank 17 communicates with the valve hole 25 of the edge cut valve 16. In the drainage tank 17, when the water level stored in the drainage tank 17 exceeds the overflow water level, this water is discharged from the upper side of the drainage tank 17 to the outside of the apparatus as an overflow water discharge passage. An overflow pipe 29 is inserted and attached from the bottom side of the tank and communicates with the outside of the instrument. When the water level in the drainage tank 17 exceeds the upper end of the overflow pipe 29, the overflow water flows out of the overflow pipe 29. It is supposed to be discharged.
[0010]
The inlet side of the drainage passage 28 is connected to the bottom surface side of the drainage tank 17, and the outlet side of the drainage passage is connected to a passage portion between the bathtub 4 of the recirculation circulation passage 5 and the suction side of the circulation pump 6. Yes. A passage between the passage connection portion 30 and the suction port of the circulation pump 6 is a pump-side circulation passage 31, and a section from the circulating hot water return port of the bathtub 4 to the passage connection portion 30 is a bathtub-side circulation passage 32. ing.
[0011]
In the drainage passage 28, a check valve 21 is provided near the drainage tank 17, and a drainage electromagnetic valve 22 is provided on the downstream side of the check valve 21. The bathtub-side circulation passage 32 is provided with a two-way valve 33 as passage switching means for selectively switching and connecting the pump-side circulation passage 31 to the bathtub-side circulation passage 32 and the drainage passage 28. The operation state of the two-way valve 33 in FIG. 5A shows a state where the pump-side circulation passage 31 and the bathtub-side circulation passage 32 are connected in communication, and FIG. 5B shows the bathtub-side circulation passage 32. Is closed, and the pump-side circulation passage 31 and the drainage passage 28 are connected in communication.
[0012]
This type of automatic bath with hopper device is provided with a control device 34, which controls hot water supply operation of the hot water supply mechanism 2, reheating operation of the reheating mechanism 1, and hot water filling operation. Has been.
[0013]
In the operation control of the hot water supply mechanism 2, the hot water tap 35 is opened and the flow rate sensor 12 starts detecting the flow rate, whereby the hot water supply heat exchanger 8 is heated to heat the water entering the hot water supply heat exchanger 8. Then, hot water having a set temperature is produced, and the hot water is led to a desired hot water supply place such as a kitchen through the hot water supply passage 11 and the hot water is discharged.
[0014]
Moreover, the hot water filling operation control is performed by a pouring control unit (not shown in FIG. 5), and hot water produced on the hot water supply mechanism 2 side is opened by opening the pouring electromagnetic valve 15. From the hot water supply passage, it passes through the pouring passage 14 and enters the recirculation circulation passage 5, and hot water is dropped into the bathtub 4 from this recirculation circulation passage 5. When the hot water is filled, the edge cut valve 16 is closed by the flowing water pressure, and the hot water of the hot water is dropped into the bathtub through the pouring passage 14 without entering the drain tank 17 side. The water level in the bathtub 4 is detected by the pressure sensor 27. When the pressure sensor 27 detects that the set water level has been reached, the hot water solenoid valve 15 is closed to stop filling the hot water. By stopping the hot water filling, the water pressure in the valve closing direction applied to the valve 24 of the edge cut valve 16 is reduced, so that the urging force in the valve opening direction of the spring 26 is overcome and the edge cut valve 16 is opened to follow the hot water supply passage 11 side. Edge cutting with the soaking circulation passage 5 side is achieved, and sewage on the bathtub 4 side is prevented from entering the hot water supply passage 11 side.
[0015]
When the edge cut valve 16 is opened, hot water in the pouring passage 14 on the upper side of the edge cut valve 16 and on the lower side of the pouring electromagnetic valve 15 is drained into the drain tank 17 from the valve hole 25.
[0016]
Further, in this type of automatic bath pot, the operation control of the control device 34 automatically switches from the hot water filling mode to the hopper drainage control mode at the end of the hot water filling, and drains hot water that has entered the drain tank 17 ( The hopper draining operation) is performed based on a flowchart as shown in FIG. 6, for example.
[0017]
First, in step 100, when the hot water filling solenoid valve 15 is closed and the hot water filling is completed, the hot water filling mode is switched to the hopper drainage control mode. In step 101, the two-way valve 33 is switched as shown in FIG. From the state, the state is changed to the state of (b) in the figure, the pump-side circulation passage 31 is switched to the drainage passage 28 side, and the bathtub-side circulation passage 32 is closed.
[0018]
Next, the drain electromagnetic valve 22 is opened in step 102, and the circulation pump 6 is started in step 103. Then, the hot water accumulated in the drainage tank 17 enters the pump circulation passage 31 from the drainage passage 28 and passes through the circulation pump 6 in the forward direction of the circulation passage 5, that is, from the circulation pump 6. It passes through the exchanger 7 and is drained into the bathtub 4.
[0019]
In step 104, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time, for example, 10 seconds has elapsed since the circulation pump 6 was started. While the predetermined time has not elapsed, the circulation pump 6 is continuously driven to drain the water in the drain tank 17, and when the predetermined time has elapsed, the drainage electromagnetic valve 22 is closed in step 105, and the circulation pump 6 in step 106. In step 107, the two-way valve 33 is switched to the state shown in FIG. 5A, and the pump circulation passage 31 and the bathtub-side circulation passage 32 are connected to each other to complete the drain operation in the hopper drain control mode.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 4, a conventional automatic bath tub with a hopper device has a guide rod 36 installed upward from the bottom surface side of the drainage tank 17, and a float 37 is slidably movable on the guide rod 36. A water level switch 38 is provided on the side wall of the drainage tank 17 to detect an upper limit water level provided in advance. When the water level switch 38 detects a tank water level at the upper limit water level, it interrupts the main sequence and executes a hopper as a subroutine. There is also known an apparatus configured to be in the drainage control mode and to drain the water in the drainage tank 17 by driving the circulation pump 6 for a certain period of time. The water level switch may be embedded in the guide rod.
[0021]
Further, recently, as shown in FIG. 3, an upper water level switch 40 is provided at the detection position of the upper limit water level provided in advance on the side wall of the drain tank 17, and the lower side of the detection position of the lower limit water level provided in advance. The present applicant has proposed an automatic bath with a hopper device that is provided with a water level switch 50 and that can detect both the upper limit water level and the lower limit water level in the drainage tank 17 by the water level switches 40, 50. (Unpublished). The proposed automatic bath tub enters a hopper drainage control mode, which is a subroutine, when the upper water level switch 40 detects that the level of water stored in the drainage tank 17 has reached the upper limit water level. The hopper draining operation is started by turning on, and when the lower water level switch 50 detects that the water level of the drain tank 17 has reached the lower limit water level, the circulation pump 6 is turned off and the hopper draining operation is ended. To do.
[0022]
According to the automatic bath pot with a hopper device as described above, for example, in the case where the construction mode is such that the appliance of the automatic bath pot is installed in the room on the first floor of the home and the bathtub 4 is installed in the room on the second floor. However, when the hot water filling is completed, the edge cut valve 16 is opened, so that the edge cut between the bathtub 4 side and the hot water supply passage 11 side is achieved, and the sewage on the bathtub side flows backward into the hot water supply passage 11 side and is mixed. It is surely eliminated and hygienic safety is ensured.
[0023]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the conventional apparatus shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, for example, the time for draining the water in the drain tank 17 from the circulation pump 6 is set (limited) to a certain time (for example, 10 seconds). Therefore, if this time is set to a time with sufficient time and the hopper draining operation is performed, when the draining operation is finished, the water in the draining tank 17 is completely drained and becomes empty, and overflows. Air introduced into the drainage tank 17 from the side of the pipe 29 is repelled and enters the circulation passage 5. In this case, the water level of the bathtub 4 cannot be detected by the pressure sensor 27, and the hot water filling operation performed based on the detected water level of the pressure sensor 27 cannot be performed accurately. It was.
[0024]
In addition, the water level switch 38 does not necessarily operate due to water falling at the closing timing of the pouring solenoid valve 15, and the water level switch 38 is turned on by vibration or the like when the pump of the next operation is turned on, so that the middle of the main sequence. The draining operation is interrupted. Since it is not known when this interruption is performed, this is a particular problem if this is performed before the pressure sensor 27 detects the pressure.
[0025]
Further, in the proposed apparatus shown in FIG. 3, the circulation pump 6 is turned off when the water level in the drain tank 17 reaches the lower limit water level, and the hopper drain operation is completed. Unlike the appliance, when the drainage operation is finished, the water in the drainage tank 17 is not completely drained and becomes empty, but the circulation pump 6 is completely driven after the circulation pump 6 is turned off. Since there is inevitably a delay before the stop, the air introduced into the drainage tank 17 from the overflow pipe 29 side is replenished into the circulation passage 5 at this time. Then, similarly to the above, there is a problem that the water level of the bathtub 4 cannot be detected by the pressure sensor 27, and accordingly, the hot water filling operation cannot be performed accurately.
[0026]
The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to cause a problem that it becomes difficult to detect the bathtub water level due to air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage 5 during the hopper draining operation. There is no automatic hopper device with a hopper device.
[0028]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows. That is, in the present invention, a recirculation passage incorporating a circulation pump that recirculates hot water in a bathtub and recuperates, and a hot water supply passage connected to the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger are connected via a pouring passage. The pouring passage is provided with a pouring control valve and an edge cut-off valve on the downstream side of the pouring control valve, and water drained when the pouring control valve is opened and closed below the pouring control valve. A drainage tank is provided. The drainage tank is provided with an overflow water discharge passage for discharging the water from the drainage tank when the water level stored in the drainage tank exceeds the overflow water level. In addition, the drainage tank is connected to the recirculation circulation passage through the drainage passage built in the edge drainage valve at the upstream side position of the circulation pump, and from the bathtub return port of the recirculation circulation passage to the passage connection portion of this drainage passage. Tub A passage switching means for selectively switching the circulation passage and the drainage passage to the pump side circulation passage from the passage connection portion to the circulation pump is provided, and the pump side circulation passage is opened by an operation command in the hopper drainage control mode. With a hopper device equipped with a control unit for hopper drainage operation that switches to the drainage passage, opens the edge drainage drain valve, starts the circulation pump, chases the water in the drainage tank, passes the circulation path in the forward direction, and discharges it to the bathtub In an automatic bath appliance, the operation of the hopper drain control mode is performed by a hot water filling operation in which the hot water control valve is opened to fill the hot water in the hot water supply heat exchanger from the hot water passage and fill the bathtub through the circulation passage. By the operation command of the hopper drainage control mode at least one of when the water level of the drainage tank reaches a predetermined upper limit water level. The hot water control valve is opened after completion of the hopper drain operation performed by the operation command in the hopper drain control mode, and hot water discharged from the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger is passed through the pouring passage. The air that passes through the recirculation circulation passage through the recirculation passage and is poured into the bathtub so that the air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage is discharged to the tub side during the hopper draining operation and the air in the recirculation circulation passage is removed. The punching operation control unit is provided.
[0029]
[Action]
In the present invention having the above-described configuration, the drainage tank is configured such that the drainage passage side is switched to the pump-side circulation passage by the passage switching means according to the operation command in the hopper drainage control mode, the edge drainage drain valve is opened, and the circulation pump is activated. The inside water enters the pump-side circulation passage from the drainage passage, passes through the recirculation circulation passage in the forward direction, and discharges into the bathtub. During this hopper drain operation, for example, air is introduced from the overflow water drain passage into the drain tank and mixed into the recirculation circulation passage. In the present invention, after the hopper drain operation is finished, the air vent operation control unit Opening the pouring control valve and pouring hot water discharged from the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger through the pouring passage through the chasing circulation passage and pouring it into the bathtub, so that the chasing circulation passage during the hopper drain operation The air mixed in is discharged to the bathtub side and removed.
[0030]
【Example】
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the description of the present embodiment, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same name portions as those in the conventional example, and the duplicate description is omitted. The automatic bath appliance with a hopper device of this embodiment is intended for various types of automatic bath tubs with a hopper device as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, and the characteristic feature of this embodiment is the hopper draining operation. At the end of the operation, a unique circuit for removing the air introduced into the drainage tank 17 from the outside of the instrument through the overflow pipe 29 and mixed in the recirculation circulation passage 5 is constructed. Before explaining the specific configuration of this embodiment, a reference example for explaining the present invention will be described first. This reference example is configured as shown in FIG. 1, and includes a hopper drain operation end detection unit 41, a pump air vent operation command unit 43, a timer 45, and a pump drive control unit 44.
[0031]
The hopper drain operation end detection unit 41 detects the end of the hopper drain operation performed in the hopper drain control mode. The drain electromagnetic valve 22 and the circulation pump 6 are both turned off, and the two-way valve 33 is, for example, When it is switched to the state of FIG. 5A, it is determined that the hopper drain operation has ended, and a hopper drain end detection signal is added to the pump air vent operation command unit 43.
[0032]
The pump air bleed operation command unit 43 functions as an air bleed operation control unit that controls the air bleed operation for removing the air in the recirculation circulation passage 5 after the hopper drain operation is completed. In this air venting operation, hot water is circulated through the recirculation circulation passage 5 by driving the circulation pump 6, thereby introducing into the drainage tank 17 from the outside of the instrument through the overflow pipe 29 during the hopper draining operation. Then, the air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage 5 is discharged to the bathtub 4 side, and the air in the recirculation circulation passage 5 is removed.
[0033]
Specifically, when receiving the hopper drain operation end detection signal applied from the hopper drain operation end detection unit 41, the pump air vent operation command unit 43 adds a pump drive start signal to the pump drive control unit 44. The timer 45 is activated. Then, a pump drive end signal is added to the pump drive control unit 44 when the air bleeding operation control time (pump drive control time) preset in the timer 45 is finished.
[0034]
The pump drive control unit 44 receives the pump drive start signal applied from the pump air release operation command unit 43, starts driving the circulation pump 6, and receives a pump drive end signal from the pump air release operation command unit 43. Sometimes, the driving of the circulation pump 6 is terminated.
[0035]
The reference example is configured as described above, and the hot water supply operation of the hot water supply mechanism 2, the reheating operation of the reheating mechanism 1, and the hot water filling operation are performed under the control of the control device 34. In addition, at the end of the hot water filling, the hopper draining operation in the hopper draining control mode is performed. In the reference example, the end of the hopper draining operation is detected by the hopper draining operation end detecting unit 41 at the end of the hopper draining operation. Sometimes, the command of the pump air bleeding operation command unit 43 is applied to the pump drive control unit, and the driving of the circulation pump 6 is started. The circulation pump 6 is driven during a pump air venting operation time set in advance in the timer 45, and the hot water in the bathtub is circulated through the recirculation circulation passage 5 by driving the circulation pump 6. Thus, during the hopper draining operation, the air introduced into the drain tank 17 from the outside of the appliance through the overflow pipe 29 and mixed into the recirculation circulation passage 5 is discharged to the bathtub 4 side, and thereby the recirculation circulation passage The air in 5 is removed.
[0036]
According to the reference example, even if air introduced into the drain tank 17 from the overflow pipe 29 side enters the circulation passage 5 during the hopper drain operation, the air is discharged to the bathtub 4 side by the air venting operation. Therefore, the water level in the bathtub 4 cannot be detected by the pressure sensor 27 due to the influence of the air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage 5, and the hot water is detected based on the detected water level of the pressure sensor 27. The tension operation can be performed accurately.
[0037]
Next, the actual施例automatic bath instrument with the hopper the present invention have groups in FIG. What is different from the above reference example is that this embodiment is provided with an air bleeding operation command section 48 instead of the pump air bleeding operation command section 43.
[0038]
After the hopper draining operation is completed, the air venting operation command unit 48 opens the pouring electromagnetic valve 15 by adding a pouring control command to the pouring control unit 46, and the hot water is discharged from the outlet side of the hot water supply heat exchanger 8. The hot water is poured into the bathtub 4 through the pouring circulation passage 5 through the pouring passage 14.
[0039]
When the bath water is below the connection port to the bathtub 4 of the recirculation circulation passage 5, when the circulation pump 6 is driven, air may be mixed from the bathtub 4 side to the recirculation circulation passage 5 side. In the present embodiment, the air in the recirculation circulation passage 5 can be removed by performing a pouring operation after the hopper draining operation is completed.
[0040]
Also in this embodiment, the air venting operation can remove the air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage 5 during the hopper draining operation. Therefore, the water level is detected by the pressure sensor 27 by the air that has entered the recirculation circulation passage 5. It becomes possible to prevent it from becoming impossible, and based on the water level detected by the pressure sensor 27, the hot water filling operation can be performed accurately.
[0041]
In addition, this invention is not limited to the said Example, Various aspects can be taken. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the hopper draining operation is performed at the end of filling, or as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the water level in the drain tank 17 reaches the upper limit water level, the automatic with hopper device is performed. Although the bath tub is used, the present invention is also applicable to, for example, a hopper draining operation performed when the automatic bath tub is used for a certain period.
[0042]
Moreover, in the said Example, although the channel | path switching means was comprised by the two-way valve 33, you may comprise using a three-way valve instead of this two-way valve 33. FIG. In this case, a three-way valve is provided in the passage connecting portion 30 between the drainage passage 28 and the recirculation circulation passage 5.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, during the hopper draining operation, even if air is introduced into the drainage tank from the outside of the appliance through the overflow drainage passage and mixed in the recirculation circulation passage, the operation control unit, in order to have to perform air removal operation of removing the air in the circulation passage reheating spits air bathtub side, bath water level by the air that enters into the hopper drainage operation during Reheating circulation passage This eliminates the conventional problem that it is difficult to detect the water bath, and provides a highly reliable automatic bath appliance.
[0044]
In addition, the air venting operation by the air venting operation control unit is performed by circulating the hot water discharged from the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger through the pouring passage after opening the pouring control valve after the bath hot water circulation operation. since a configuration carried out by pouring through a passage in a bath, can perform an operation to remove the air in reheating circulation passage more reliably and will, be a more reliable automatic bath instrument it can.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a reference example for explaining the present invention;
It is a block diagram showing a main configuration of the real施例automatic bath instrument with hopper according to the present invention; FIG.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of an automatic bath with a hopper device that the applicant previously proposed.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional automatic bath with a hopper device provided with means for detecting the upper limit water level of a drainage tank equipped in the hopper device.
FIG. 5 is a system configuration diagram of a conventional general automatic bath with a hopper device.
6 is a flowchart showing an example of a hopper draining operation of the apparatus shown in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
5 Recirculation circulation line 6 Circulation pump 16 Edge cut valve 17 Drain tank 22 Drainage electromagnetic valve 28 Drainage passage 33 Two-way valve 41 Hopper drainage operation end detection unit 43 Pump air venting operation command unit 44 Pump drive control unit 46 Pouring control unit 48 Air bleeding operation command section

Claims (1)

A recirculation passage with a built-in circulation pump that recirculates hot water in the bathtub and a hot water supply passage connected to the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger are connected via a pouring passage. A pouring control valve and an edge cut-off valve on the downstream side of the pouring control valve are provided, and a drain tank for storing water drained when the pouring control valve is opened and closed is provided below the edge cut-off valve. The drainage tank is provided with an overflow water discharge passage for discharging the water from the drainage tank when the water level stored in the drainage tank exceeds the overflow level. Is connected to the recirculation circulation passage through a drainage passage incorporated in the drainage drain valve at a position upstream of the circulation pump, and a bathtub-side circulation passage extending from the bathtub return port of the recirculation circulation passage to the passage connection portion of the drainage passage. The exhaust A passage switching means is provided for selectively switching the passage to the pump-side circulation passage from the passage connection portion to the circulation pump. The pump-side circulation passage is switched to the drainage passage according to the operation command in the hopper drainage control mode, and the edge cutting is performed. In the automatic bath appliance with a hopper device comprising a hopper drain operation control unit that opens a drain valve, activates a circulation pump, repels water in the drain tank, passes the circulation path in the forward direction and discharges it to the bathtub, The operation of the hopper drainage control mode is performed at the end of the hot water filling operation in which the hot water control valve is opened and the hot water of the hot water supply heat exchanger is replenished from the hot water passage and the hot water is filled into the bathtub through the circulation passage. It is configured to be performed by an operation command in the hopper drain control mode at least one time when the water level of the drain tank reaches a predetermined upper limit water level, The hot water control valve is opened after the end of the hopper drain operation performed in accordance with the operation command of the hopper drain control mode, and hot water discharged from the outlet side of the hot water heat exchanger is recirculated through the pouring passage. An air venting operation control unit is provided for discharging the air mixed in the recirculation circulation passage to the bathtub side and removing the air in the recirculation circulation passage by pouring water into the bathtub through the hopper. An automatic bath appliance with a hopper device.

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