EP0286941A1

EP0286941A1 - System for continuous regulation of the flow of water in hydromassage baths

Info

Publication number: EP0286941A1
Application number: EP88105389A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Nino Posar; Luciano Casasola; Umberto Gerin; Fabio Lancerotto
Original assignee: Jacuzzi Europe SpA
Current assignee: Jacuzzi Europe SpA
Priority date: 1987-04-13
Filing date: 1988-04-05
Publication date: 1988-10-19
Also published as: YU68388A; NO881570L; DK198288A; NO881570D0; FI881709A; FI881709A0; DK198288D0; PT87222A; IT8783350A0

Abstract

System for continuous regulation of the flow of water (10) in hydromassage baths (11) or mini swimming pools or the like, which comprises a motor-driven pump (12) to circulate the water (10) through a delivery pipe (13) and a recirculation pipe (14) forming a closed circuit, at least one by-pass circuit (15) with a by-pass valve (16) to regulate the flow of water (10) cooperating in parallel with the motor-driven pump (12).

Description

This invention concerns a system for continuous regulation of the flow of water in hydromassage baths, mini swimming pools or the like.
To be more exact, the invention concerns a manual or automatic system for continuous regulation of the flow of water to suit the hydromassage characteristics desired.
The invention relates also to the steps of filling and emptying the bath before and after the hydromassage cycle respectively.
Hydromassage systems applied to baths are already known in the state of the art. The known systems deliver a flow of water mixed with air through hydraulic circuits.
The hydraulic circuits consist generally of a motor-driven pump, pipes to circulate the water and orientable delivery outlets located on the inner wall of the bath. Such delivery outlets obtain by a venturi effect the mixing of the jet of water with air.
The jet is directed and regulated in intensity by hand according to the user's choice.
These systems do not enable the flow of water to be varied continuously at one and the same time from all the delivery outlets.
Systems for continuous regulation of the flow of water are also known which work in conjunction with regulation of the individual delivery outlets within the bath. These systems act on the variation of the number of revolutions of the pump of the water or on the variation of the losses of load.
The variation in the number of revolutions of the pump is controlled generally by an asynchronous electric motor and entails the employment of an inverter, which is especially costly and delicate from a usage point of view.
Moreover, the variation in the number of revolutions leads to the pump having to work with a hydraulic efficiency which is not always the best possible.
Variation of the losses of load involves acting by choking the delivery of the pump by means of a valve, together with resulting variations in the efficiency of the pump itself.
All the known systems involve the drawback that, when several persons are using the same bath, continuous variations may take place in the hydromassage characteristics in accordance with the differing personal requirements. Such characteristics have therefore to be ascertained from time to time during performance of the hydromassage cycle and possible to be corrected by manual operations.
The present invention eliminates these shortcomings and provides a simple and economical system for continuous and simultaneous regulation of the flow of water.
The invention provides also for automation of the hydromassage process with the determination of programmes for the control and operation of the equipment.
According to the invention the system for continuous regulation of the flow of water consists of a motor-driven pump to circulate the fluid within the bath by means of delivery and recirculation pipes.
The delivery pipe is connected to orientable outlets which are located on the inner wall of the bath and are in turn connected to air intakes, as in the state of the art.
The system is connected to sensors which sense the level of the fluid within the bath and to sensors which sense the temperature of the fluid.
At least one by-pass circuit with losses of load equivalent to those of the delivery and recirculation circuit is included in parallel with the motor-driven pump.
Continuous regulation of the flow to suit a user's requirements is obtained by acting on the by-pass valve.
Regulation by means of the by-pass valve, moreover, enables the motor-driven pump to be employed in conditions of maximum efficiency at a number of revolutions equal to the rated number.
According to the invention the by-pass valve is actuated by means of a servomechanism.
According to a variant the by-pass valve can be actuated by hand by means of a control device located on the bath.
Actuation of the by-pass valve by a servomechanism is obtained by a remote control available to a user. The remote control is of a two-way type and can therefore send and receive information.
The remote control works in the field of infrared rays for the safety of the user and to avoid any problem of disturbance or interference of an electromagnetic nature.
The remote control cooperates with an electronic system consisting of a central unit to process and actuate the commands sent by the remote control.
The central unit controls by means of sensors the actuation of the motor-driven pump and the temperature and level of the water in the bath.
The remote control displays also a series of messages useful for the operation of the whole hydromassage system.
As the central unit and the remote control make use of a microprocessor, it is possible to determine a set of programmes to control and operate the hydromassage equipment. Such programmes define hydromassage cycles which can be made individually suitable by a user for his own requirements. These programmes are then stored and called upon when required.
Several persons using the same equipment can call upon their own personal hydromassage cycle or cycles at any time.
The system provides for the ability to create a hydromassage cycle while the equipment is in use.
Furthermore, the system arranges for the ability to apply modifications to a stored cycle during the progress of the hydromassage.
The system enables also the filling, emptying and possible rinsing steps for the bath to be automated by the inclusion of suitable actuators for these functions, for instance solenoid valves or the like.
The purpose of a continuous regulation of the flow of water in a fully automated hydromassage cycle is achieved in this way.
The invention is therefore obtained with a system for continuous regulation of the flow of water in hydromassage baths or mini swimming pools or the like, which comprises a motor-driven pump to circulate the water through a delivery pipe and a recirculation pipe forming a closed circuit, the system being characterized in that at least one by-pass circuit with a by-pass valve to regulate the flow of water cooperates in parallel with the motor-driven pump.
The attached figures, which are given as a non-restrictive example, show the following:-

Fig.1 gives a functional diagram of the system according to the invention;
Fig.2 shows a block diagram of the interaction between the remote control and the central unit;
Fig.3 gives a flow chart of a cycle for filling the bath;
Fig.4 gives a flow chart of a hydromassage cycle with manual control,
Fig.5 gives a flow chart of an automatic hydromassage cycle;
Fig.6 shows a flow chart of a cycle for emptying the bath.

A system for continuous regulation of the flow of a fluid 10 in a bath 11 comprises a motor-driven pump 12 with a delivery pipe 13 and recirculation pipe 14 forming a closed circuit.
A by-pass circuit 15 with a by-pass valve 16 is included in parallel with the motor-driven pump 12. The by-pass valve 16 is operated by a servomechanism 17.
A sensor 18 to sense the level of the water 10 and a sensor 19 to sense the temperature of the water are included in the bath 11.
On the bath 11 a central unit 20 to process data and to issue commands is suitably fed along a line 31 and receives signals along a line 21 from the temperature sensor 19 and signals along a line 22 from the level sensor 18.
The central unit 20 is connected by a line 23 to the motor-driven pump 12 for the start-up and switch-off steps.
The central unit 20 is also connected by a line 24 to the servomechanism 17 for actuation of the by-pass valve 16. This connection is two-way, namely from the central unit 20 to the servomechanism 17 for control of the regulation of the by-pass valve 16 and viceversa for information regarding the position of the by-pass valve 16, for instance in the event of momentary lack of current for the equipment and for subsequent re-actuation.
The central unit 20 is connected by a line 32 to a valve 132 controlling entry of water 10 into the bath 11 and is connected by a line 33 to a valve 133 controlling emptying of the bath 11.
A line for auxiliary services such as the switching on of bulbs, lights and other equipment is referenced with 34.
A remote control 25 of a two-way type 26-126 operating with infrared rays converses with the central unit 20. This remote control 25 is equipped with a display 27 which normally shows the temperature and the step of the hydromassage cycle in progress.
A user can call for other useful information, such as the length of his stay in the bath, the time and other details, to be shown on the display 27.
Fig.2 shows a block diagram of the interaction between the remote control 25 and central unit 20.
The central unit 20 comprises a unit 28 to process data received and transmitted and an interface unit 29 for the connection 23 to the motor-driven pump 12, for the connection 24 to the by-pass valve 16, for the connection 21 to the temperature sensor, for the connection 22 to the level sensor, for the connection 32 to the valve 132 controlling entry of water 10 into the bath 11, for the connection 33 to the valve 133 controlling emptying of the bath 11 and for the line 34 to the auxiliary services.
The central unit 20 includes a unit 30 for sending and receiving messages to and from the remote control 25. This unit 30 may also be located outside the central unit 20.
The remote control 25 comprises a unit 130 for sending and receiving messages to and from the central unit 20 and also a unit 128 to process the data received and sent.
The remote control 25 is equipped with a display 27 having a keyboard for the entry of data by a user.
Fig.3 shows a flow chart of a cycle for the filling of the bath 11.
Firstly, a choice is made by means of the remote control 25 between a manually controlled hydromassage cycle and an automatic cycle.
If a manual cycle is selected, the display 27 of the remote control 25 will show the indications for insertion of some specific data, such as the weight of the person and the capacity of the bath 11.
Thereafter the step of filling the bath 11 is undertaken.
Fig.4 shows the manually controlled hydromassage cycle in which the required features of the treatment are entered.
In the final step before the water 10 is discharged, the user can select storage of the cycle just performed by means of a reference code.
Fig.5 shows an automatic hydromassage cycle called upon by its reference code. After the bath 11 has been filled, the display 27 shows the successive steps of the cycle and enables the user to intervene in the performance of the steps.
Fig.6 shows the cycle for emptying the bath 11. After emptying has taken place, the user can select a step to rinse the bath 11.

Claims

1 - System for continuous regulation of the flow of water (10) in hydromassage baths (11) or mini swimming pools or the like, which comprises a motor-driven pump (12) to circulate the water (10) through a delivery pipe (13) and a recirculation pipe (14) forming a closed circuit,the system being characterized in that at least one by-pass circuit (15) with a by-pass valve (16) to regulate the flow of water (10) cooperates in parallel with the motor-driven pump (12).

2 - System as claimed in Claim 1, in which the by-pass valve (16) is regulated by means of a servomechanism (17).

3 - System as claimed in Claim 1, in which the by-pass valve (16) is regulated by the user by means of a manual regulation device located on the bath (11).

4 - System as claimed in Claim 1 or 2, in which the servomechanism (17) is actuated by a remote control (25) which cooperates with a central data processing unit (20).

5 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which the remote control (25) is of a two-way type.

6 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which the remote control (25) works in the field of infrared radiations.

7 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which a valve (132) controlling entry of a fluid (10) into the bath (11) is actuated by means of the remote control (25).

8 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which a valve (133) controlling the emptying of fluid (10) from the bath (11) is actuated by means of the remote control (25).

9 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which hydromassage cycles made individually suitable by a user are determined by means of the remote control (25).

10 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which the hydromassage cycles made thus individually suitable are stored and can be called upon according to the user's requirements by means of the remote control (25).

11 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which the hydromassage cycles can be determined by means of the remote control (25) while the equipment is in use.

12 - System as claimed in any claim hereinbefore, in which the hydromassage cycle can be altered by means of the remote control (25) while the cycle is in progress.