JP2002062047A - Drying device in bathroom - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a heater 1 in a bathroom in which cooling at clothes 22 or at an inner surface of a bathroom 21 while regenerating (removing) an adsorbing agent 5a is prevented and its drying time can be shortened. SOLUTION: When an adsorbing agent 5a is regenerated, a part of air sucked within a bathroom 21 is discharged out of the bathroom through a ventilation passage 8 and hot air W becoming wet while passing through the adsorbing agent 5a is blown out into a bathroom 9 through a blowing-out port 7. With such an arrangement as above, clothes 22 within the bathroom 21 or an inner surface of the bathroom is prevented from being cooled also during the time in which the adsorption agent 5a is being regenerated. When the operation is transferred from a regenerating step to a drying step, wet absorbing is performed smoothly with the adsorption agent 5a, resulting in that a drying time can be shortened.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bathroom drying apparatus for drying clothes and a bathroom itself using a space in the bathroom.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in drying clothes or drying a bathroom itself by using a space in a bathroom, a fan disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-114197 has been proposed as a device using an adsorbent. , Heater and adsorbent,
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. HEI 6-154486 discloses a heater and a fan that supports an adsorbent. In each case, the air in the bathroom is taken in, the moisture in the air is adsorbed by the adsorbent, and the interior of the bathroom is dried, and the moisture taken in by the adsorbent is desorbed through warm air and discharged outside from the ventilation passage etc. Is what you do.

[0003]

However, FIG. 2A,
In (b), as shown in the graph (characteristic (a)) showing the transition between the clothing temperature and the total moisture content of the clothing in the conventional method, the conventional bathroom drying apparatus removes moisture from the adsorbent. In the step of regenerating the adsorbent by desorption, the supply of heat to the bathroom is stopped, so that the clothes and the interior of the bathroom are cooled by the latent heat of vaporization of water vapor, and the temperature decreases.

[0004] In the subsequent drying (adsorption) step, the adsorption of the adsorbent is also active at first, and the air that has become hot air due to the moisture absorption blows out into the bathroom. As the drying of the interior of the bathroom progresses, it cools down due to the latent heat of vaporization of the water vapor, and when the adsorption capacity is lost, the heat supply by moisture absorption is also eliminated, so that the temperature decreases from the time of the start of the adsorption.

Thus, drying (adsorption) and regeneration (desorption)
As a result, the temperature of the clothes and the interior of the bathroom gradually decreased due to the evaporation of moisture from the clothing and the interior of the bathroom, making it difficult to dry, and it took time to obtain a sufficiently dry state.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and it is possible to prevent cooling of clothes and the interior of a bathroom while regenerating an adsorbent, thereby shortening the time until drying. It is an object to provide a drying device.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a suction port (3) for sucking air in a bathroom (21) is provided at both ends of an air passage (2);
An outlet (7) for blowing air into the bathroom (21) is provided, and an air heating means (4) is provided upstream of the air in the air passage (2), and an adsorbent (5a) is provided downstream of the air. An air dehumidifying means (5) and a first blowing means (6) for circulating air in the air passage (2) are provided, and air is sucked between the suction port (3) and the air heating means (4). A ventilation passage (8) for discharging the air inside the bathroom (21) to the outside by the second blowing means (9) is provided, and when the adsorbent (5a) is regenerated, part of the air in the bathroom (21) sucked in is reduced. The air is discharged from the ventilation passage (8) to the outside of the room, and the hot air (W) that has passed through the adsorbent (5a) is blown out from the outlet (7) into the bathroom (21). .

[0008] Thereby, even while the adsorbent is being regenerated, the clothes in the bathroom and the interior of the bathroom are prevented from cooling down, and the moisture is smoothly absorbed by the adsorbent when the process is shifted from the regeneration process to the drying process. Drying time can be shortened.

In the invention according to claim 2, the ventilation passage (8)
(10) and a control device (11) for opening and closing the air conditioner. The control device (11) controls the air temperature before passing through the air dehumidifier (5) having the adsorbent (5a) and the air temperature after passing through the air dehumidifier (5). And the air temperature of the air heating means (4) and the ventilation to the ventilation passage (8) are controlled based on the temperature difference before and after the passage.

This is because when the adsorbent is actively performing the operation of adsorbing and desorbing, the action causes a temperature difference in the air before and after passage, but the adsorption and desorption are sufficiently performed. When the operation stagnates, the fact that the temperature difference gradually decreases is used for switching the process.

Specifically, when the temperature difference becomes small after the desorption is completed, the power supply to the air heating means is cut off to switch to the adsorption step, and the second blowing means is stopped and the opening / closing means for the ventilation passage is closed. Then, the air circulation is changed to the internal circulation, and when the temperature difference is reduced due to the progress of the adsorption, the air heating means is energized to switch to the desorption step, and the ventilation means is opened / closed to open the second ventilation means. Was driven to ventilate. At this time, the moist warm air that has passed through the adsorbent is blown into the bathroom as described above.

In this way, the regeneration (desorption) is automatically performed upon detecting that the adsorption efficiency of the adsorbent has decreased, and the adsorption is automatically restarted upon detecting that the desorption has been completed. No efficient drying will be performed.

In the invention according to claim 3, the adsorbent (5a)
A control device that detects the air temperature before passing through the air dehumidifying means (5) and the air temperature after passing through the air dehumidifying means (5) and controls the energization to the air heating means (4) based on the temperature difference before and after the passing. 11) is provided.

In this case, the process switching operation as claimed in claim 2 is performed without opening and closing the ventilation passage. As a result, an effect similar to the above can be obtained as the drying effect, and the configuration is simplified by the elimination of the opening / closing means for the ventilation passage, and the control can be reduced, so that the cost can be reduced.

Incidentally, the reference numerals in parentheses of the above means are examples showing the correspondence with specific means described in the embodiments described later.

[0016]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is an explanatory view showing the configuration of a bathroom drying apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. This device is installed inside the ceiling or wall of the bathroom 21,
Drying of clothes 22 and bathroom 2 using the space in bathroom 21
This is for drying the inside of 1 itself. Numeral 2 denotes a casing serving as an air passage. At both ends, a suction port 3 for sucking air in the bathroom 21 and an outlet 7 for blowing air into the bathroom 21 are open.

In the casing 2, an electric heater serving as the air heating means 4 is provided upstream of the air, an air dehumidifying means 5 provided with an adsorbent 5a is provided downstream of the air, and a first air sucking and discharging air is provided. A circulation fan as the blowing means 6 is provided.

A ventilation passage 8 is provided between the suction port 3 and the electric heater 4 for discharging the sucked air in the bathroom 21 to the outside of the room. The ventilation fan 8 serving as the second blowing means 9 operates and opens and closes. The operation of the opening and closing door as means 10 is interlocked,
Ventilation during ventilation is turned on and off.

The energization and driving of the electric heater 4, the circulation fan 6, the ventilation fan 9, and the opening / closing door 10 are controlled by the control device 11, and the information 12 and 13 are used as operation switching information before and after passing through the adsorbent 5a. Is a temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the air to detect a temperature difference.

As the adsorbent 5a, fins made of a thin aluminum plate or the like are formed in a honeycomb shape in the ventilation direction, and particles of a solid adsorbent such as zeolite or silica gel are adhered to the surface of the fins. The adsorbent 5a may be made of a non-woven fabric, such as a non-woven fabric, having a honeycomb shape and impregnated with an absorbing liquid such as lithium bromide. In addition, although the reaction rate of desorption is slow, a polymer hygroscopic resin may be used by attaching it to the fin as described above.

Next, the operation of the bathroom drying apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described with reference to the drying of clothes. FIG. 2A,
The operation will be described together with graphs (characteristics (b)) showing transitions of the clothing temperature and the total water content of the clothing in the present invention in (b) and (c).

When the drying operation is started, the opening / closing door 10 of the ventilation passage 8 is opened, and the ventilation fan 9 is operated to discharge the humid air in the bathroom 21 to the outside of the room and to ventilate from a dressing room in an adjacent room. Dry air flows in through the port 23 and the like, and ventilation in the bathroom 21 is performed.

In the interior of the bathroom drying apparatus 1, first,
A desorption step is performed as regeneration of the adsorbent 5a. More specifically, the circulation fan 6 is operated, and the electric heater 4 is energized (ON) to heat the passing air, thereby removing moisture from the adsorbent 5a and blowing wet warm air W into the bathroom 21. Is done.

As a result, the garment is warmed to a temperature higher than the gross water content, although the total water content does not drop so much, so that the garment is ready to release moisture. Then, as the desorption proceeds, the air temperature passing through the adsorbent 5 a and detected by the temperature sensor 13 is heated by the electric heater 4 detected by the temperature sensor 12,
The temperature rises so as to be the same as the air temperature entering a, and the temperature difference disappears. When the temperature difference falls below a certain value, the process is switched to the adsorption process for drying.

More specifically, the operation of the ventilation fan 9 is stopped, the opening and closing door 10 of the ventilation passage 8 is closed for internal circulation, and the power supply to the electric heater 4 is stopped (OFF) to suck the air inside the bathroom 21. Is absorbed by the adsorbent 5a at a stretch. Since clothing absorbs moisture from a warm state, evaporation is active and the total water content is greatly reduced and drying proceeds.

Although heat is generated by this adsorption action, the heating of the passing air by the electric heater is stopped, so that as the adsorption proceeds, the air temperature passing through the adsorbent 5a and detected by the temperature sensor 13 becomes equal to the temperature sensor 12 The temperature of the air going into the adsorbent 5a detected at the temperature decreases to become the same as the temperature of the air going into the adsorbent 5a, and the temperature difference disappears. When the temperature difference becomes equal to or less than a certain value, the process is switched to a desorption process for regeneration again, and thereafter, the desorption and adsorption are repeated to dry.

This prevents the clothes 22 in the bathroom 21 and the inner surface of the bathroom 21 from cooling down while the adsorbent 5a is being regenerated, and allows the adsorbent 5a to smoothly absorb moisture when the process shifts from the regeneration process to the drying process. Is performed, the drying time can be reduced.

When it is detected that the adsorption efficiency of the adsorbent 5a has decreased by utilizing the temperature difference caused by the degree of operation of the adsorbent 5a, the regeneration (desorption) is automatically performed, and the desorption is completed. Is detected, the adsorption is automatically resumed, so that efficient and efficient drying is always performed.

The drying operation may be stopped at the discretion of the user, or may be stopped when a predetermined time set by a timer or the like is reached. Alternatively, the operation may be stopped when the temperature difference between the air temperatures before and after passing through the adsorbent 5a in the desorption step or the adsorption step does not occur any more than a certain value.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing the configuration of a bathroom drying apparatus 1 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The above-described step switching operation is performed until the ventilation passage 8 is opened and closed. It was carried out without.

As a result, a drying effect similar to the above can be obtained, and the structure is simplified by the elimination of the opening / closing door 10 of the ventilation passage 8, so that the control can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a bathroom drying device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a graph showing changes in clothing temperature and total moisture content of clothing according to the present invention and a conventional method.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a bathroom drying device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 2 casing (air passage) 3 suction port 4 electric heater (air heating means) 5 air dehumidifying means 5a adsorbent 6 circulation fan (first blowing means) 1 outlet 2 ventilation path 3 ventilation fan (second blowing means) 4 opening and closing Door (opening / closing means) 11 Control device 12 Bathroom W Wet hot air

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3L072 AA05 AB06 AC02 AF02 AG05 3L113 AA01 AB02 AC08 AC45 AC46 AC51 AC53 AC67 AC75 BA14 CA08 CB05 CB17 CB24 DA10 4L019 BA03 EA04 EB04 EB06

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A bathroom (21) at both ends of an air passage (2).
A suction port (3) for sucking air inside, and the bathroom (21)
An air outlet (7) for blowing air into the air passage; an air dehumidifier having an air heating means (4) upstream of the air in the air passage (2) and an adsorbent (5a) downstream of the air; (5) and first air blowing means (6) for circulating air in the air passage (2) are provided, and between the suction port (3) and the air heating means (4),
A ventilation passage (8) for discharging the sucked air in the bathroom (21) to the outside by the second blowing means (9) is provided, and when the adsorbent (5a) is regenerated, the sucked bathroom (2) is used.
1) A part of the internal air is discharged outside through the ventilation passage (8), and the warm air (W) passing through the adsorbent (5a) is discharged from the outlet (7) into the bathroom (21). A bathroom dryer characterized in that it is blown into the interior. 2. An opening / closing means (10) for opening and closing the ventilation passage (8) and a control device (11) are provided, and the control device (11) comprises the air dehumidifying means (5) provided with the adsorbent (5a). 5) The air temperature before passing through and the air temperature after passing through are detected, and the temperature difference between before and after the passage detects the power supply to the air heating means (4) and the ventilation to the ventilation passage (8). The bathroom dryer according to claim 1, wherein the bathroom dryer is controlled. 3. An air temperature before passing through the air dehumidifying means (5) provided with the adsorbent (5a) and an air temperature after passing through the air dehumidifying means (5) are detected, and the temperature difference between before and after the passing is detected. A control device (11) for controlling energization of the means (4)
The bathroom dryer according to claim 1, further comprising: