JP2002371613A - Stream adjusting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stream adjusting device which can positively carry out its function without application of electric power thereto from outside. SOLUTION: According to the stream adjusting device, a generator 2 for generating an electromotive force by driving a water turbine by tap water flowing through a water supply pipe 1, is arranged in the water supply pipe 1. A microcomputer 8 and solenoid valves 4, 5 are driven by opening a rim water supply pipe 1a or a jet water supply pipe 1b, based on an electromotive force generated by the generator 2 by stream produced in the water supply pipe 1 and the rim water supply pipe 1a or the jet water supply pipe 1b. The solenoid valves 4, 5 are formed so as to doubly open the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b at the time of switching opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a water flow regulating device. This water flow adjusting device is suitable for use in flush toilets such as siphon jet flush toilets.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as a water flow adjusting device employed in a siphon jet type flush toilet, a main flow path to which pressurized water which is water having a pressure such as tap water is supplied, and two or more branches from the main flow path And a switching valve capable of switching the supply of pressurized water to each sub-flow path, and control means capable of controlling the switching valve. The switching valve is usually driven by electric power.

[0003] In this type of water flow adjusting device, the control means controls the switching valve, so that the pressurized water supplied from the main flow path is branched and supplied to the sub flow path. For this reason, according to this water flow adjusting device, it is possible to supply the pressurized water supplied from the main flow path to each sub flow path at a desired timing.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned water flow adjusting device, the electric power of the control means and the switching valve is usually supplied from an external AC power source for home use. Increases the amount of used.

[0005] For this reason, the present inventors have proposed a water flow adjusting device using the electromotive force generated by a water turbine power generation means provided in a main flow path as a control means and a switching valve as a power source (Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-10).
2338). According to this water flow adjusting device, it is not necessary to supply electric power from the outside, so that the power consumption of the entire device can be reduced.

[0006] However, in this water flow adjusting device, the flow rate of the pressurized water supplied into the main flow passage may decrease depending on the timing of switching the opening of the sub flow passage. In such a case, the electromotive force generated by the turbine generator may decrease, and the power supply voltage supplied to the controller may drop. In particular, since a large current is required to drive the switching valve, when the switching valve is driven immediately after the flow rate of the pressurized water supplied into the main flow path is reduced, the power supply voltage supplied to the control unit is controlled. Descends further. Then, if the power supply voltage supplied to the control unit becomes lower than the reset level, the control unit is reset, and normal control is not performed.
If the reset level is lowered to avoid this problem, the operation of the control means becomes unstable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, and has as an object to solve the problem of providing a water flow regulating device capable of reliably performing a function without supplying power from the outside.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems The present inventors have intensively studied to solve the above problems. Then, the present inventors have found that the above problem can be solved by adjusting the timing of switching the opening of the sub flow path and not reducing the flow rate of the pressurized water, and completed the present invention.

That is, the water flow adjusting device of the present invention is provided with a main flow path to which the pressurized water is supplied, two or more sub-flow paths branched from the main flow path, and driven by electric power. In a water flow regulating device including a switching valve capable of switching the supply of the pressurized water and control means capable of controlling the switching valve,

In the main flow path or at least one of the sub flow paths, there is provided a turbine generating means for driving a water turbine by the pressurized water flowing therein to generate an electromotive force,

The control means and the switching valve are configured to reduce an electromotive force generated by the water turbine power generation means by a water flow generated in the main flow path and the sub flow path when at least one of the sub flow paths is opened by the switching valve. Driven based on

The switching valve is characterized in that the switching valve is configured to open a plurality of sub-flow paths in an overlapping manner when switching the opening of the sub-flow paths.

In the water flow adjusting device of the present invention, when the control means switches the open state of one sub-flow path to the open state of the other sub-flow path by controlling the switching valve, first the other sub-flow path is controlled. After the path is opened, one sub-flow path is closed, and a plurality of sub-flow paths are temporarily overlapped to open. Therefore, when switching the opening of the sub flow path, the flow rate of the pressurized water flowing in the main flow path does not decrease, but the flow rate of the pressurized water temporarily increases. Thus, for example, if a water turbine power generation means is provided in the main flow path, the electromotive force of the water turbine power generation means also temporarily increases, and at this time, even if the switching valve that requires a large current is driven, A situation in which the power supply voltage supplied to the control means drops cannot occur.

Therefore, according to the water flow adjusting device of the present invention, the opening of the sub flow path can be reliably switched only by the electromotive force generated by the water turbine power generation means.

In the water flow regulating device of the present invention, it is desirable that the switching valve consumes electric power only when changing from the open state or the closed state. This eliminates the need for electric power for maintaining the open or closed state of the switching valve, and can reliably switch the opening of the sub flow path even if the electromotive force generated by the turbine generator is not so large.

In this water flow adjusting device, a switching valve can be provided in each sub-flow path. Thereby, the opening of each sub flow path can be freely controlled. In this manner, a solenoid valve or the like can be employed as a switching valve provided in each sub flow path.

On the other hand, in the water flow adjusting device of the present invention, the switching valve may be provided between the main flow path and each sub flow path. In this case, the opening of the plurality of sub-flow paths can be controlled by one switching valve. Thus, as a switching valve provided between the main flow path and each sub flow path, an electromagnetic three-way valve driven by a stepping motor or the like can be adopted.

In the water flow regulating device of the present invention, it is preferable that an on-off valve driven by electric power and capable of opening and closing the main flow path is provided in the main flow path upstream of the turbine generating means. The open / close valve is driven based on the electromotive force generated by the water turbine power generation means by the water flow generated in the main flow path and the sub flow path by opening the main flow path and opening at least one sub flow path by the switching valve. Must be configured as follows. This allows
When the on-off valve is in the closed state, the water pressure does not act on the turbine generating means and the switching valve provided downstream of the on-off valve. Therefore, it is not necessary to make the water turbine power generation means and the switching valve so robust. For this reason, high durability can be exhibited. Further, since the water turbine power generation means and the switching valve can be simplified, the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Further, since the on-off valve is also driven based on the electromotive force generated by the turbine generator, there is no need to supply power from the outside.

Further, in the water flow regulating device of the present invention, it is desirable that the on-off valve consumes electric power only when changing from the open state or the closed state. This eliminates the need for electric power to maintain the open / closed state of the on-off valve, thereby reducing the load on the water turbine generator.

In the water flow control device according to the present invention, the opening / closing valve is manually opened at the time of startup, is opened by the power supplied from an external power source, or is a capacitor or the like storing the power of the water turbine power generation means. Can be opened by the electric power supplied from the power storage means.

[0021]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments 1 and 2 embodying the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) As shown in FIG. 1, a water flow adjusting device according to Embodiment 1 is incorporated in a part of a western style flush toilet of a siphon jet type. This water flow adjusting device has a water supply pipe 1 as a main flow path to which tap water as pressure water is supplied, and a rim water supply pipe 1a and a jet water supply pipe 1b as sub flow paths branched from the water supply pipe 1. are doing.

The water supply pipe 1 is provided with a latch-type solenoid valve 3 as an on-off valve capable of opening and closing the water supply pipe 1. Also,
The rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b are provided with latch-type solenoid valves 4, 5 as switching valves capable of switching the supply of tap water.
Is provided.

In the water supply pipe 1 downstream of the solenoid valve 3, a generator 2 as a water turbine power generation means is arranged, and a voltage output of the generator 2 is input to a power supply stabilizing circuit 7. This power stabilization circuit 7
The stabilized DC voltage is used as a power supply of the microcomputer 8 as control means. The microcomputer 8 is connected to a capacitor 6 for storing surplus power of the generator 2. The solenoid valves 3, 4, and 5 are connected to drivers 9, 10, 1
1 is connected to the microcomputer 8. Further, a cleaning switch 12 of a remote controller is electrically connected to the microcomputer 8.

In the water flow adjusting device for a Western-style flushing toilet constructed as described above, when the washing switch 12 of the remote controller is pressed by the electric power stored in the condenser 6, the "water flow adjusting program" shown in FIG. to start.

When the "water flow adjustment program" is started, first, step S10 is executed. In step S10,
Pulses CP1, CP from microcomputer 8 to drivers 9, 10
2 is output. Thereby, the solenoid valves 3 and 4 shown in FIG.
Is opened, and tap water is supplied to the rim water supply pipe 1a via the water supply pipe 1. For this reason, tap water is supplied to the rim water passage of the Western style toilet body (not shown), and is sprayed onto the inner surface of the toilet bowl through a number of spray holes.

At this time, the flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 rapidly increases and reaches a constant flow rate. For this reason, the water wheel of the generator 2 is driven to generate an electromotive force. The electromotive force is input to the power supply stabilizing circuit 7, and after being stabilized in the power supply stabilizing circuit 7, is applied to the microcomputer 8 as a power supply voltage, and the surplus is stored in the capacitor 6. Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the pulses CP1 and CP2 are output for a time Tw sufficient to open and close the solenoid valves 3 and 4. Hereinafter, all the pulses CP1, CP2, and CP3 are output for the time Tw. The time is measured by a timer interrupt using a software timer. Step S
After the execution of step 10, step S11 is executed.

In step S11, after the lapse of time T1,
The pulse CP3 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 11. Thereby, the solenoid valve 5 is opened, and tap water is supplied to the jet water supply pipe 1b via the water supply pipe 1. Therefore, tap water is sprayed into the toilet bowl from a jet hole (not shown) of the Western style toilet body. Also, the flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 increases. After execution of step S11, step S11
12 is executed.

In step S12, after the lapse of time T2,
The pulse CP2 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 10. Thereby, the solenoid valve 4 is closed, and the rim water supply pipe 1a is closed.
The supply of tap water to is stopped. Therefore, supply of tap water to the rim waterway is stopped. In addition, the flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 decreases to a constant amount. Then, after execution of step S12, step S13 is executed.

In step S13, after a lapse of time T3,
The pulse CP2 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 10. Thereby, the solenoid valve 4 is opened, and tap water is supplied to the rim water supply pipe 1a via the water supply pipe 1. For this reason, tap water is again sprayed from the rim waterway to the inner surface of the toilet bowl. In addition, the flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 also increases again. Then, after execution of step S13, step S14 is executed.

In step S14, after the lapse of time T4,
The pulse CP3 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 11. Thereby, the solenoid valve 5 is closed, and the supply of the tap water to the jet water supply pipe 1b is stopped. Therefore, the injection of tap water from the jet hole into the toilet bowl is stopped. Also,
The flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 decreases to a constant amount. Then, after execution of step S14, step S15
Is executed.

In step S15, after the lapse of time T5,
The pulse CP2 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 10. Thereby, the solenoid valve 4 is closed, and the rim water supply pipe 1a is closed.
The supply of tap water to is stopped. Therefore, water spray from the rim water channel is stopped. Also, the flow rate of tap water flowing through the water supply pipe 1 becomes zero. Then, after execution of step S15, step S16 is executed.

In step S16, after the lapse of time T6,
The pulse CP1 is output from the microcomputer 8 to the driver 9. Thereby, the solenoid valve 9 is closed. Thus, a series of operations of the water flow adjusting device is completed.

In this water flow adjusting device, the microcomputer 8 controls the solenoid valves 4 and 5 so that, for example, the rim feed pipe 1
When switching from the open state of a to the jet water supply pipe 1b, the jet water supply pipe 1b is first opened, then the rim water supply pipe 1a is closed, and the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe are temporarily stopped. 1b overlaps with the open state. Therefore, when switching the opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b, the flow rate of the tap water flowing in the water supply pipe 1 does not decrease, but the flow rate of the tap water temporarily increases. In this way, the electromotive force generated by the generator 2 also temporarily increases. At this time, even if the solenoid valves 4 and 5 requiring a large current are driven, the power supply voltage supplied to the microcomputer 8 may drop. I can't get it. Therefore, the microcomputer 8 is not reset.

Therefore, according to this water flow adjusting device,
Opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b can be reliably switched only by the electromotive force generated by the generator 2.

Further, in this water flow adjusting device, since the water supply pipe 1 is provided with the solenoid valve 3 capable of closing the water supply pipe 1,
When the solenoid valve 3 is in the closed state, water pressure does not act on the generator 2 and the solenoid valves 4 and 5 provided downstream of the solenoid valve 3. Therefore, the generator 2 and the solenoid valves 4 and 5 do not need to be so robust. For this reason, high durability can be exhibited. Also, the generator 2 and the solenoid valves 4 and 5
Can be simplified, so that the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

Further, in this water flow regulating device, since the solenoid valves 3, 4, 5 and the microcomputer 8 are driven based on the electromotive force generated in the generator 2, there is no need to supply power from the outside.

Further, in this water flow adjusting device, the solenoid valve 3,
4 and 5 consume power only at the time of change from the open state or the closed state, so that power for maintaining the solenoid valves 3, 4, and 5 in the open state or the closed state is unnecessary, and the generator 2 The burden on the user can be reduced.

(Embodiment 2) As shown in FIG. 4, the water flow adjusting device of Embodiment 2 is also incorporated in a part of a Western-style flush toilet which is a siphon jet type similarly to the case of Embodiment 1.

In this water flow adjusting device, an electromagnetic three-way valve 20 as an on-off valve is provided between the water supply pipe 1 and the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b. The electromagnetic three-way valve 20 is connected to the microcomputer 8 via a stepping motor 22 and a driver 21. The rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1
Since the opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b is not switched, the solenoid valve is not provided. Other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment.

In this water flow adjusting device, for example, when the opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a is switched to the jet water supply pipe 1b, changes in the flow rates of the rim water supply pipe 1a, the jet water supply pipe 1b and the water supply pipe 1 are shown in FIG. explain.

When the microcomputer 8 outputs to the driver 21 a switching command to open the rim water supply pipe 1a to the jet water supply pipe 1b, the stepping motor 2 is transmitted via the driver 21.
2 drives the electromagnetic three-way valve 20. As a result, the flow rate of the rim feed pipe 1a decreases, and conversely, the jet feed pipe 1a
The flow rate of b increases. At this time, since the flow rate of the jet water supply pipe 1b increases by the decrease in the flow rate of the rim water supply pipe 1a,
The flow rate of the water supply pipe 1 is constant. In this water flow adjustment device,
Except that the switching of the opening between the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b is performed simultaneously as described above, the same control as that of the first embodiment is performed.

In this way, when the opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b is switched, the electromotive force generated by the generator 2 does not increase, but does not decrease. Therefore, the power supply voltage supplied to the microcomputer 8 does not drop so much, and the microcomputer 8 is not reset. Also, in this water flow regulating device, one electromagnetic three-way valve 2
With 0, the opening of the rim water supply pipe 1a and the jet water supply pipe 1b can be switched, so that the control is simple. Other effects are the same as those of the first embodiment.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a water flow adjusting device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing a timing of opening and closing an electromagnetic valve, etc., in the water flow adjusting device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a water flow adjusting program according to the water flow adjusting device of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a water flow adjusting device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a flow rate of a water supply pipe and the like according to the water flow adjusting device of the first embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Main flow path (water supply pipe) 1a, 1b ... Sub flow path (1a ... Rim water supply pipe, 1b ... Jet water supply pipe) 4, 5, 20 ... Switching valve (4, 5 ... Latch type solenoid valve, 20)
... Electromagnetic three-way valve) 8 ... Control means (microcomputer) 2 ... Water turbine power generation means (generator) 3 ... On-off valve (latch-type solenoid valve)

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuaki Kozen 5-1, Koiehonmachi, Tokoname-shi, Aichi F-term in Inax Co., Ltd. (Reference) 2D039 AC04 FC09 FD01 3H074 AA12 AA20 BB10 BB30 CC12 CC43 CC50

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A main flow path to which pressurized water is supplied, two or more sub-flow paths branched from the main flow path, and driven by electric power to switch the supply of pressurized water to each of the sub-flow paths. A switching valve, and a water flow adjusting device including control means capable of controlling the switching valve, wherein a water turbine is driven by the pressurized water flowing inside the main flow path or at least one of the sub flow paths. A water turbine generating means for generating an electromotive force is provided, wherein the control means and the switching valve are configured such that a water flow generated in the main flow path and the sub flow path by opening at least one of the sub flow paths by the switching valve; The water flow is driven based on an electromotive force generated by the water turbine power generation means, wherein the switching valve is configured to open a plurality of the sub-flow paths in an overlapping manner when switching the opening of the sub-flow paths. Adjustment device. 2. The water flow control device according to claim 1, wherein the switching valve consumes electric power only when changing from the open state or the closed state. 3. The water flow adjusting device according to claim 1, wherein a switching valve is provided in each of the sub-flow paths. 4. The water flow regulating device according to claim 1, wherein the switching valve is provided between the main flow passage and each of the sub flow passages. 5. An on-off valve, which is driven by electric power and can open and close the main flow path, is provided in a main flow path upstream of the water turbine power generation means. Claims characterized in that, by opening one sub-flow path, it is configured to be driven based on an electromotive force generated by the water turbine power generation means by a water flow generated in the main flow path and the sub-flow path. Item 5. The water flow adjusting device according to Item 1, 2, 3, or 4. 6. The water flow regulating device according to claim 5, wherein the on-off valve consumes electric power only when changed from the open state or the closed state.