EA013856B1 - Sauna - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to facilities satisfying sanitary- hygiene human's needs and providing curative procedures by using infrared radiation. The inventive result is aimed at designing highly-effective, ecologically-clean sauna resulting in reducing power consumption and improving efficiency leading to higher curative effect. The sauna is embodied as an isolated room having a ceiling, floor and walls inside which there is at least one sit-couch, electrical heaters, a steam generator, a fan and a monitoring and control system. The electrical heaters are embodied as linear IR radiation casing made from electrical porcelain with pressed therein resistive filaments. The steam generator comprises a water-filled vessel provided with an immersion electrical heater, a steam ejector, an apparatus for automatic make-up, means for maintaining optimum water level. The IR radiation casings are cylinder-shaped, glaze-coated and assembled in sections. The inner surfaces of the sauna walls have a light-reflecting coating.

Description

The invention relates to means for satisfying the sanitary and hygienic needs of a person and conducting healing procedures by using infrared radiation (IR).

A well-known sauna for physiotherapy with IR radiation, containing a cabin, inside which are placed flat IR radiation heaters with a resistive coating, designed to work in the long wavelength range (patent No. 10025469, А61Н 33/06, 2000).

Flat resistive heaters have unstable electrical resistance due to the heterogeneity of the composition of the composite material of the resistive layer over the cross section.

Under non-uniform boundary conditions of surface heat transfer, an uneven temperature field occurs, which leads to local overheating or underheating of the coating, as a result of which the wavelength of infrared radiation can shift to the area of adverse interaction with the human body, reducing the healing effect.

In addition, as the heaters are operated, the resistive layer gradually burns out as a result of interaction with oxygen, which requires additional energy consumption and predetermines a relatively low efficiency.

High temperatures in places of overheating can cause burns in case of accidental contact, as well as cause the phenomenon of thermal decomposition and dry sublimation of organic dust, accompanied by the release of harmful substances, such as carbon monoxide CO.

Known bath made in the form of a separate room, bounded by a ceiling, floor and walls, inside of which at least one seat is installed, and also equipped with a system of flat electric heating panels, a steam generator, a fan and a control and monitoring system (patent VI No. 2226382, А61Н 33 / 06, 2004).

A well-known bath can be considered as a sauna, capable of operating both in low humidity and high temperature mode, and in saturated water vapor and moderate temperature using infrared radiation. Flat electric heating panels used in the well-known bathhouse are a cladding and an integral part of walls, floors and seats, forming a source of thermal radiation with an excess radiation area and a complex temperature control system.

As sources of infrared radiation, these electric heaters are not effective enough due to the use of conventional ceramic tiles or natural stone for radiating surfaces with a low coefficient of conversion of thermal energy into radiation energy.

As a result, most of the energy is transmitted by convection and goes to heating the air, which in the healing process, in comparison with infrared radiation, plays an insignificant role and provides only surface heating of the skin of the human body within 3-4 mm.

In general, the electric heating system has a significant thermal inertia, which increases the time it takes to reach the nominal operating mode due to the need for the initial heating of the metal elements of the panels and the mass of the facing material to the operating temperature, which leads to significant energy costs and reduced work efficiency.

The steam generator is an elementary heater with accumulating material in the form of basalt stones with electric heating. To get steam, a small amount of water is poured onto the hot stones, which turns into a cloud of steam and spreads throughout the steam room. Such a device for generating steam is unsafe in operation and is not able to provide a given level of humidity and create a stable microclimate in the sauna.

The objective of the invention is the creation of a highly efficient, environmentally friendly sauna by achieving a technical result, expressed in reducing energy consumption and increasing efficiency, as well as by improving the healing effect.

The problem is solved in that the sauna is made in the form of a separate room, bounded by a ceiling, floor and walls, inside which at least one seat is installed, and is equipped with electric heaters, a steam generator, a fan, a control and management system, according to the invention, electric heaters are made in the form of linear shells radiation made from electrotechnical porcelain with resistive glow bodies pressed into them, the steam generator contains a vessel filled with water, equipped with an immersion electric heater with a steam ejector that communicates with the sauna cavity, the control and management system includes a processor, and temperature and humidity controls.

The radiation shells are made in the form of cylindrical geometric elements assembled in sections. The surfaces of the radiation shells are coated with glaze to increase moisture resistance and spectral density of radiation in the range of 8-12 microns.

The steam generator is equipped with automatic make-up equipment, means of maintaining a stable water level, pressure control and shut-off valves.

The walls of the sauna have a reflective coating.

The sauna can work in the dry hot-air bath mode with a relative humidity of 10% and an air temperature of 60-100 ° C, in the Russian bath mode with saturated water vapor and a maximum air temperature of 95 ° C, as well as in any mode convenient for consumers in the temperature range

- 1 013856

40-120 ° C and any given humidity of 10-95%. All modes are supported automatically.

On the surface of the radiation shells, a temperature is maintained within the range of 100-120 ° C, which corresponds to the maximum of the energy spectrum of radiation in the long-wavelength range of 9.2-9.5 microns. Temperature adjustment is carried out by periodically turning off sections of electric heaters.

The radiation shells are made of electrical porcelain, have a high coefficient of conversion of thermal energy into infrared energy, due to the finely dispersed structure, a certain density, which bring the emissivity to the radiation of a black body.

In addition, they have high breakdown strength and low ability to absorb water, which eliminate the possibility of the appearance of electrical voltage on the outer surface of the radiation sheath and increase the safety against electric shock.

Temperature is measured directly using a digital temperature sensor. Humidity is measured by the psychrometric method by the difference in the readings of the dry and wet temperature sensors installed inside the sauna.

The control unit processes the incoming information, compares it with the set values and issues the appropriate commands to enable or disable the actuators.

The sauna is shown in FIG. 1, 2, where:

FIG. 1 - general view, longitudinal section;

FIG. 2 is a plan view, a section along AA in FIG. one.

The sauna contains a room bounded by a ceiling 1, floor 2, walls 3. Inside the sauna there is a seat 4, sections of electric heaters 5 with radiation shells 6, a temperature sensor 7, a humidity sensor 8. Outside there is a remote control 9, a steam generator 10, a fan 11, an electric cabinet 12. The steam generator 10 comprises a sealed vessel 13 filled with water, an immersion heater 14, an ejector 15, and an electromagnetic valve 16 for dispensing steam.

The feed system of the vessel 12 includes a low level sensor 17, upper level 18 and a solenoid valve 19. A pressure gauge 20 is installed to control the pressure, and a safety valve 21 is installed for safe operation.

Ceiling 1, walls 3 are insulated with isover with a reflective layer 22 and sheathed with wood (aspen, poplar).

Sauna works as follows.

To bring the sauna to working condition set the desired temperature and humidity.

The vessel 13 of the steam generator 10 is filled with water to the upper level, power is supplied to the electric heaters 5. In a few minutes, the sauna is ready for therapeutic procedures with infrared radiation for various pathologies.

In the process of treatment, infrared rays penetrate the human body to a depth of 4 cm, while warming up tissues, muscles, internal organs, joints, bones, blood vessels.

Warming is accompanied by abundant secretion of sweat, toxins and toxins.

A visit to the sauna does not end with cooling, but with an individual therapeutic rehabilitation or therapeutic massage.

To carry out health and hygiene procedures in the sauna, a dry hot air bath mode or a heating mode with saturated water vapor, the humidity of which is inversely proportional to temperature, is set.

To create the optimal microclimate in the sauna, sufficient air exchange is provided with the help of a fan 11, which allows maintaining the desired humidity and removing fumes associated with the stay of visitors in the steam room.

To saturate the sauna with water vapor, a steam generator 10 is used.

When applying voltage to the immersion heater 14, water is heated and intense vaporization occurs.

The steam is dispensed into the sauna through the ejector 15 after opening the electromagnetic valve 16 by the appropriate processor command. Upon reaching a predetermined humidity level, the valve 16 blocks the flow of steam. To reduce the humidity level, the fan 11 is turned on, which extracts the air saturated with steam.

Fresh air enters through the channel in the ejector 15 (not shown), communicating with the atmosphere when the fan 11 in the discharge mode.

When the water level in the steam generator 10 drops to the lower mark, the low level sensor 17 is triggered, as a result of which a command is issued to open the valve 19 for supplying water to the vessel 13.

When the upper water mark is reached, the sensor 18 is activated, at the signal of which the valve 19 closes.

Thus, the technical solutions used in the proposed sauna, allow to obtain a number of advantages, which boil down to the following.

An environmentally friendly microclimate is created in the sauna due to the use of emitters made of electrical porcelain having high resistance to thermal decomposition and

- 2 013856 lack of the possibility of emission of harmful substances.

Electric heaters have a long service life (3000-10000 h), since the heating bodies are pressed into the ceramic mass, are completely protected from interaction with oxygen and are saved from quick burnout.

The efficiency of the sauna is increased due to a more rational energy consumption, by reducing the excess radiation area and heating of secondary structural elements.

The healing effect is increased by increasing the proportion of infrared radiation in the total temperature radiation.

Claims (5)

CLAIM 1. Sauna, made in the form of a separate room, bounded by the ceiling, floor and walls, inside which is installed at least one seat equipped with electric heaters, steam generator, fan, monitoring and control system, characterized in that the electric heaters are made in the form of linear radiation shells, made of electrotechnical porcelain with resistive heating bodies pressed into them, the steam generator contains a vessel filled with water and equipped with a submersible electric heater and a steam ejector communicating with the sauna cavity, the monitoring and control system includes a processor, temperature and humidity control devices. 2. Sauna according to claim 1, characterized in that the radiation envelopes are made in the form of geometric elements of a cylindrical shape, assembled in a section. 3. Sauna according to claim 1, characterized in that the surfaces of the radiation envelopes are coated with glaze to increase the moisture resistance and spectral density of radiation in the wavelength range of 8-12 microns. 4. Sauna according to claim 1, characterized in that the steam generator is equipped with automatic feed equipment, means of maintaining the optimum water level, pressure control and stop valves. 5. Sauna according to claim 1, characterized in that the walls of the sauna have a reflective coating.