JP2004305495A - Battery charger for vacuum cleaner and vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a battery charger for a vacuum cleaner periodically charging secondary batteries at a low power rate without any troublesome labor and also charging the secondary batteries in necessity without restricting by the periodical charging. <P>SOLUTION: This battery charger is provided with a charging circuit 23 provided in a vacuum cleaner body 2 and charging the secondary batteries 6, a timer part 26, a switch 28 and a forced charging part 27. The timer part 26 is fed with a power from a power supply P. The timer part 26 can control an electrical connection to the charging circuit 23, set a charging start time of operating the charging circuit 23 at a same time every day and charge the power at a low power rate such as using the midnight power. The forced charging part 27 provided operably from the outside and operated by the switch 28 is characterized in charging the secondary batteries 6 for a prescribed limited time irrelevant to the periodical charging so as to respond to the lowering of the battery power during the use. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a charging device for charging a secondary battery of a cordless vacuum cleaner main body, and a vacuum cleaner including the charging device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, a cordless type vacuum cleaner main body that incorporates a secondary battery and drives an electric blower with the power of the battery to perform vacuum suction type cleaning, and a charging device that charges the secondary battery in the main body. An electric vacuum cleaner is provided.
[0003]
This type of vacuum cleaner electrically connects the terminals of the charging device and the cleaner body by mounting the cleaner body on a charging stand having a built-in charging device electrically connected to a commercial AC power supply. The battery is connected to charge the secondary battery (for example, see Patent Document 1).
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-2002-78224 (paragraphs 0014-0017, 0031-0033, FIGS. 1 to 3)
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the vacuum cleaner of Patent Document 1, the charging device is connected to a commercial AC power supply via a power plug, but in a general use state of the charging device, the charging device is always connected to the commercial AC power supply. Most of it. Thus, after cleaning during the daytime, the cleaner main body is placed on the charging stand, and the cleaner body is stored, and at the same time, charging of the secondary battery is started.
[0006]
By the way, it is known that the electricity rate at midnight is lower than the electricity rate in the daytime. Vacuum cleaners are often used during the day, for example, other than at the time when the midnight electricity rate is applied.For this reason, conventionally, charging is performed during the daytime when the electricity rate is high. Almost. Therefore, if the secondary battery is charged during the late night time period when the late night power rate is applied, the power rate can be saved.
[0007]
However, attempting to artificially charge the battery every day in the late-night time zone when the midnight electricity rate is applied, with the plug in and out, requires continuous awareness of this, and the power plug It is not realistic because it requires labor such as insertion and removal.
[0008]
As described above, most of the use time periods of the vacuum cleaner are during the day. When the cordless vacuum cleaner body is used (during cleaning) in the daytime, the power of the secondary battery in the main body is often reduced and cleaning is not possible. In this case, it is unavoidable that the cleaning is temporarily interrupted. However, even if the battery is not fully charged, it is desired that the battery be charged to a certain extent so that at least the cleaning can be completed.
[0009]
The problem to be solved by the present invention is that the secondary battery can be charged periodically with low-cost power without any troublesome work, and the secondary battery can be charged without being restricted by the periodic charging. It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum cleaner charging device and a vacuum cleaner which can be provided each time a battery is needed.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a timer unit to which electric power of a power supply is supplied, which controls an electrical connection with a charging circuit for charging a secondary battery provided in a vacuum cleaner main body to perform charging. The charging start time at which the circuit operates is set to the same time every day, and the charging of the secondary battery is performed for a predetermined time regardless of the charging by a forced charging unit operated by a switch operably provided from the outside. I try to run it only.
[0011]
According to the present invention, even if the user is not particularly conscious of the charging time zone, the charging of the secondary battery is automatically performed in the same charging time zone every day, for example, in the time zone when the electricity rate is low at midnight. Can be done In addition, despite the fact that the charging start time is determined, it is necessary to operate the switch as required to operate the forced charging unit and to perform the charging for a short period of time for a predetermined time even at a time other than during the regular charging. Therefore, even if the power of the secondary battery is reduced during cleaning, it is possible to restart cleaning after charging for a short time.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 includes a cordless-type vacuum cleaner main body 2 and a charging stand 3 for storing and charging the main body 2 when not in use.
[0013]
The electric blower 4, the drive control unit 5 (see FIG. 2), and the secondary battery 6 are built in the rear part (the lower part in the storage state shown in FIG. 1) of the cleaner body 2 in use. The battery 6 is used as a power supply for the electric blower 4 and the drive control unit 5, and the like. The drive control unit 5 is made by combining various circuit components including a microprocessor (not shown). A dust collecting cup 7 is detachably attached to a front part (upper part in the storage state shown in FIG. 1) of the cleaner body 2 in use, and a dust suction port 8 is provided.
[0014]
One end 9b of a dust suction hose 9a provided in the suction air path body 9 is inserted and connected to the dust suction port 8. The suction air path body 9 is connected to a dust suction hose 9a, an extension pipe 9d detachably inserted and connected to a gripping pipe portion 9c of the hose 9a, and is detachably inserted and connected to a tip of the extension pipe 9d (not shown). And a suction port body. A hand operation unit 10 (see FIG. 2) is provided in the grip tube unit 9c. The hand operation unit 10 is provided with various push button switches (not shown) so that the drive control unit 5 performs on / off, input control, and the like for the electric blower 4 in response to input commands from the push button switches. Has become.
[0015]
When the electric blower 4 is driven, dust-containing air on the floor of the house is sucked into the dust suction port 8 through the suction air passage 9, and then dust and air are generated in the dust collecting cup 7 by the cyclone-type separation action. And separated into The separated dust is collected in the dust collection cup 7. After the air flows out of the dust collecting cup 7 and is sucked into the electric blower 4, the air flows out of the blower 4 and is discharged out of the cleaner main body 2 from an exhaust unit (not shown) of the cleaner main body 2.
[0016]
A pair of power receiving terminals 11a and 11b (see FIG. 2) is provided on a portion of the cleaner main body 2 which is in contact with the charging stand 3, for example, on the rear surface of the cleaner main body 2 in use (the lower surface in the housed state shown in FIG. 1). Is provided. As shown in FIG. 2, the power receiving terminal 11a is connected to one pole of the secondary battery 6, and the power receiving terminal 11b is connected to the other pole of the secondary battery 6.
[0017]
As shown in FIG. 2, a charging device 21 is built in the charging stand 3. The charging device 21 includes a charging control unit 22 and a charging circuit 23. The charge control unit 22 is made by combining various circuit components including a microprocessor (not shown), and a power plug 24 is connected to the charge control unit 22. The power plug 24 is led out of the charging stand 3 and is always connected to the outlet of the commercial AC power supply P.
[0018]
A pair of power supply terminals 25a and 25b are connected to an output terminal of the charging circuit 23 for charging the secondary battery 6. These power supply terminals 25a and 25b are both provided on the upper surface of the charging stand 3, and when the cleaner main body 2 is placed on the charging stand 3, they individually contact the power receiving terminals 11a and 11b. Thereby, the charging device 21 and the secondary battery 6 are electrically connected.
[0019]
The charging control unit 22 includes a timer unit 26, a forced charging unit 27, and the like. The timer section 26 controls the electrical connection and disconnection of the charging circuit 23 for charging the secondary battery 6, and sets the same charging start time every day when the charging circuit 23 operates. The charging start time is set in a time zone set for low-priced power, for example, a time zone to which a late-night power rate is applied. The setting of the charging start time is performed in advance. However, when a timer operation unit that can be operated from the outside of the charging stand 3 and a display that can be visually recognized from the outside of the charging stand 3 are provided on the charging stand 3, these settings are used. The charging start time may be arbitrarily set by a user's setting operation within the time zone to which the midnight power rate is applied.
[0020]
The forced charging unit 27 is configured to execute the charging of the secondary battery 6 only for a predetermined time regardless of the periodic charging controlled by the timer unit 26. The time (predetermined time) of the interrupt charging by the forced charging unit 27 is considerably shorter than the time required for the secondary battery 6 to be fully charged (indicating a charged state in which the battery power is equal to or higher than the predetermined battery power) with late-night power. Is set to a short time sufficient to charge less power than the battery power consumed in one standard cleaning.
[0021]
In order to operate the forced charging section 27 for a predetermined time, the charging stand 3 is provided with an automatic reset type switch 28 that can be operated from the outside. Further, the charging stand 3 is provided with an alarm that notifies the user of the completion of charging when charging is required during cleaning. For example, an indicator light 29 that is turned on when the switch 28 is turned on and that is turned off when the charging for a predetermined time by the forcible charging unit 27 is completed is attached.
[0022]
The vacuum cleaner main body 2 of the vacuum cleaner 1 having the above configuration is placed and stored on the charging stand 3 already connected to the power source P as shown in FIG. Is done. With this placement, the power receiving terminals 11a and 11b of the cleaner body 2 and the power supply terminals 25a and 25b of the charging stand 3 come into contact with each other.
[0023]
However, the charging control unit 22 does not cause the charging circuit 23 to function until the charging start time set in the timer unit 26 of the charging control unit 22 is reached. Therefore, when the time when the cleaner main body 2 is placed on the charging stand 3 is a time such as daytime when the midnight power rate is not applied, regardless of contact between the terminals 11a and 25a and between the terminals 11b and 25b, The rechargeable battery 6 in the cleaner body 2 is not charged.
[0024]
Then, the battery power is applied to the charging circuit 23 under the control of the charging control unit 22 at the same time that the charging start time set in the timer unit 26 is reached in the middle of the night when the midnight power rate is applied in the above-described state. Is performed, and the charging circuit 23 functions. For this reason, the charging control of the secondary battery 6 by the charging circuit 23 is started, and the secondary battery 6 is charged until the secondary battery 6 is fully charged in a time zone in which the late-night power rate is applied. Since the battery power of the charged secondary battery 6 is detected by a battery voltage detection unit (not shown) of the charge control unit 22, when it is detected that the battery power is fully charged, the charge control is performed. The unit 22 cuts off the power supply to the charging circuit 23 and stops charging the secondary battery 6.
[0025]
As described above, according to the routine procedure of putting the used vacuum cleaner main body 2 on the charging stand 3 and storing the same, the secondary cleaner in the vacuum cleaner main body 2 is used every day at the time when the midnight power rate is applied. The charging of the battery 6 is automatically repeated. For this reason, the user does not need to extraordinarily determine the charging time and perform the charging operation by himself / herself. Is rechargeable and easy to use.
[0026]
By the way, for example, during cleaning in the daytime, the power of the secondary battery 6 may be reduced during the cleaning, and the suction performance may be significantly reduced. In this case, as described above, although the rechargeable battery 6 is periodically charged within a set time period other than the daytime, for example, the charging stand 3 is connected to the switch 28. By operating the switch 28, the battery can be charged temporarily.
[0027]
That is, after the cleaning is interrupted and the cleaner main body 2 is placed on the charging stand 3 and the switch 28 is operated, the charging control unit 22 causes the forced charging unit 27 to function, so that the timer unit 26 is bypassed. The power is supplied to the charging circuit 23 to cause the circuit 23 to function for a predetermined short time (several minutes to ten and several minutes), and to turn on the indicator lamp 29 only during the predetermined time. Therefore, after confirming that the indicator light 29 is turned off, the cleaner main body 2 is detached from the charging stand 3 and cleaning can be restarted, and thus the remaining cleaning can be completed.
[0028]
In spite of the fact that the regular charging time period for the secondary battery 6 is determined as described above, the suction performance is greatly reduced due to the power reduction of the secondary battery 6 due to use when the charging time is out of the charging time period. In the case of a drop, the temporary charging is possible at that time, so that there is no inconvenience that the cleaning has to be completed halfway, and the cleaning can be resumed after the temporary charging in a short time.
[0029]
Although the one embodiment is configured as described above, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, the charging circuit 23 of the charging device 21 may be built in the cleaner body 2 instead of the charging stand 3. In this case, since the charging circuit 23 and the secondary battery 6 are electrically connected, the power receiving terminals 11a and 11b of the cleaner body 2 are formed by the input terminals of the charging circuit 23, and the power supply terminals 25a of the charging stand 3 , 25b are formed at the output end of the charge control unit 22.
[0030]
In the present invention, in a state where the cleaner main body 2 is placed on the charging stand 3, for example, in a time zone in which a late-night electricity rate is applied, the charging control unit 22 starts from the charging start time set in the timer circuit 26. When the secondary battery 6 is charged, and after the battery 6 has been fully charged, if the battery power drops to the set auxiliary charging voltage level, the battery is fully charged again for a short time so as to recover the fully charged battery power. May be provided, that is, a function of performing so-called auxiliary charging.
[0031]
Furthermore, when a secondary battery is periodically charged with inexpensive power, the power source to be charged is not limited to midnight power. For example, in a house equipped with a solar power generation device (power source), this power generation device is used. It is also possible to use an electric power that is obtained indoors from the inverter and supplied indoors.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, while being able to charge a rechargeable battery regularly with low-cost electric power, without needing troublesome trouble, it is not restricted to this regular charge, but every time the rechargeable battery needs to be charged. It is possible to provide a vacuum cleaner charging device and a vacuum cleaner that can be easily operated.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a housed state of a vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electric circuit of the electric vacuum cleaner in FIG. 1;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Vacuum cleaner, 2 ... Vacuum cleaner main body, 3 ... Charging stand, 6 ... Secondary battery, 11a, 11b ... Power receiving terminal, 21 ... Charging device, 22 ... Charge control part, 23 ... Charging circuit, 24 ... Power plug , P: commercial AC power supply, 25a, 25b: power supply terminal, 26: timer unit, 27: forced charging unit, 28: switch

Claims (3)

In a charging device for charging a secondary battery provided in a vacuum cleaner body,
A charging circuit for charging the secondary battery,
A timer unit that is supplied with power from a power source and controls an electrical connection with the charging circuit to set a charging start time at which the charging circuit operates to the same time every day.
A forced charging unit that executes the charging of the secondary battery only for a predetermined time regardless of the charging,
A switch that is provided to be operable from the outside and operates the forced charging unit;
A charging device for a vacuum cleaner comprising: The charging device for a vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the timer unit sets the charging start time in a time zone to which a late-night power rate is applied. A charging stand provided with the charging device according to claim 1 or 2, and having a power supply terminal and a power plug connected to a power supply,
A cleaner body having a power receiving terminal connected to the power supply terminal in the mounted state while being removably mounted on the charging stand with a built-in secondary battery,
Vacuum cleaner equipped with.

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