JP2003106672A - Water heater - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water heater that reduces running cost and prevents hot water unavailability. SOLUTION: The water heater starts an additional heating operation when water in a hot water storage tank 3 falls to or below a remaining hot water quantity triggering an additional heating request determination. The remaining hot water quantity for determining the additional heating request is changed according to a determinative remaining hot water quantity changing signal. The determinative remaining hot water quantity changing signal consists of a signal for commanding hot water supply from the hot water storage tank 3 to a bathtub 20. The remaining hot water quantity for determining the additional heating request is changed before or after the hot water supply to the bathtub 20. An additional heating quantity by the additional heating operation is changed according to a subsequent state of use.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hot water supply device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the current electricity rate system, the electricity rate unit price at night is set lower than that at daytime. Therefore, in a hot water supply apparatus including a hot water storage tank, it is common to operate at night and store hot water in the hot water storage tank. In this case, it is preferable that the hot water boiled at night is used up in the daytime and stored again at night. That is, it is preferable not to operate during the daytime when the unit price of electricity is high.

[0003]

However, the amount of hot water used varies from day to day and is not constant. For this reason, the amount of hot water stored at night may be insufficient, resulting in a so-called hot water outage. In the state of running out of hot water, it suddenly changed to water during use of the hot water, which was extremely unpleasant for the user. Also, in order to make up for the shortfall, boiling operation is performed, but this boiling is a daytime operation with a high unit price, and in addition, extra boiling may be performed,
The running cost was high.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and an object thereof is to provide a hot water supply apparatus capable of reducing running costs and preventing hot water shortage. .

[0005]

Therefore, the hot water supply apparatus of claim 1 is a hot water supply apparatus in which the boiling operation is started when the amount of hot and cold water in the hot water storage tank 3 becomes equal to or less than the required boiling remaining hot water amount. The feature is that the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount is changed based on the determination remaining hot water amount change signal.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the first aspect, when the hot and cold water in the hot water storage tank 3 is used and the boiling required determination residual hot water amount is reached, the boiling operation is started and the hot water storage tank 3 is supplemented with hot and cold water. It does not run out of water. Also,
The criterion for starting the boiling operation is the determination remaining hot water amount change signal, and further, the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount can be changed based on this signal, and unnecessary boiling operation can be prevented.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention, the determination residual hot water amount change signal is constituted by a signal for supplying hot water from the hot water storage tank 3 to the bath tub 20, and the boiling is performed before and after hot water supply to the bath tub 20. The feature is that the required determination remaining hot water amount is changed.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to change the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount before and after hot water is supplied from the hot water storage tank 3 to the bathtub 20. That is, the amount of hot water used is different before and after hot water supply, and by setting the required boiling remaining hot water amount before and after hot water supply, efficient operation without waste can be achieved.

The hot water supply apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the boiling amount in the boiling operation is changed according to the subsequent usage condition.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, since the boiling amount by the boiling operation can be changed according to the subsequent usage situation, the boiling amount can be set to the amount desired by the user. It is possible to prevent useless driving.

The hot water supply device according to claim 4 is a hot water supply device in which the boiling operation is started when the amount of hot water in the hot water storage tank 3 becomes equal to or less than the required boiling water remaining amount, and before and after the predetermined instruction signal. The feature is that the boiling amount by the boiling operation is controlled independently.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the fourth aspect, the boiling amount by the boiling operation can be independently controlled before and after the predetermined instruction signal.
For example, in the case of instructing hot water supply to the bathtub 20 (so-called hot water filling), the boiling amount by the boiling operation can be arbitrarily set before and after the predetermined instruction signal. As a result, the amount of boiling can be set to a small amount after the filling with a small amount of use, and the amount of boiling can be set to a large amount before the filling with a large amount of use. Of course, if you plan to use a large amount of hot water after filling, you may set a large boiling amount, and conversely, if you do not plan to bathe before filling the bath, decrease the boiling amount. Can be set. In this way, the boiling amount can be set according to the amount of hot water used, and moreover, it is possible to prevent the hot water run-down state in which the hot water used runs out. In addition, the amount of boiling can be adjusted independently before and after filling with hot water and the like, and fine control operation can be performed.

The hot water supply apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the above-mentioned boiling required determination remaining hot water amount is set by the manual operation switch 44.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the fifth aspect, it is possible to set the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount by operating the manual operation switch 44, and the switching can be easily performed.

The hot water supply apparatus according to a sixth aspect is characterized in that the boiling amount by the boiling operation is set by the manual operation switch 45.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to the sixth aspect, the boiling amount can be set by operating the manual operation switch 45, and the switching can be easily performed.

The hot water supply apparatus according to claim 7 is characterized in that a boiling stop switch 48 is provided, and the boiling operation is stopped by the operation of the boiling stop switch 48 until the midnight power application start time.

In the hot water supply apparatus according to claim 7, the boiling operation can be stopped until the midnight power application start time by operating the boiling stop switch 48, so that the daytime boiling operation with a high unit price is prevented. Therefore, the cost can be reduced.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Specific embodiments of a water heater according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 2 is a simplified view of a hot water supply device. This hot water supply device includes a tank unit 1 and a heat source unit 2, and heats water (hot water) in the tank unit 1 by the heat source unit 2.

The tank unit 1 includes a hot water storage tank 3,
Hot water stored in the hot water storage tank 3 is a bathtub 20 described later.
Etc. Therefore, the hot water storage tank 3 is provided with a water supply port 5 on its bottom wall, a hot water outlet 6 is provided on its upper wall, water is supplied from the water supply port 5 to the hot water storage tank 3, and high temperature hot water is discharged from the hot water outlet 6. Comes out of the bath. In this case, a water supply channel 8 having a pressure reducing valve 7 is connected to the water supply port 5, an intake port 10 is opened on the bottom wall of the hot water storage tank 3, and a hot water supply is provided on the upper side wall (peripheral wall) of the hot water storage tank 3. Mouth 11 is open. The water intake 10 and the hot water supply port 11 are connected by a circulation path 12, and a water circulation pump 13 and a heat exchange path 14 are provided in the circulation path 12.

A mixing valve 15 is provided at the tap hole 6.
The hot water supply passage 16 having the above is connected to the mixing valve 15, and the water supply passage 8 is connected to the mixing valve 15. Further, a hot water circulation circuit 19 is connected to the hot water discharge passage 16 via a connection passage 18 having an electromagnetic valve 17. A bath 20, a pump 21, a water level sensor 22, a heater 23, etc. are provided in the hot water circulation circuit 19.

That is, the high-temperature hot water (warm water) discharged from the hot water outlet 6 is mixed with low-temperature water by the mixing valve 15 and the hot water circulating circuit 19 to the bath 20 via the connection path 18.
Is supplied to. Then, if a predetermined amount of hot water is supplied,
The heater 23 of the hot water circulation circuit 19 can keep the hot water in the bathtub warm.

Further, the heat source unit 2 is provided with a refrigerant circuit R, and the refrigerant circuit R includes the compressor 25 and the heat exchange passage 1 described above.
4, and the subcooling heat exchanger 27
The receiver 28, the expansion valve 29, the evaporator 30, and the like. Further, the refrigerant circuit R connects the compressor 25 and the water heat exchanger 26 with a refrigerant passage 31 and a refrigerant passage 32 that connects the expansion valve 29 and the evaporator 30 with each other.
3 and connect the bypass circuit 33 to the defrost valve 3
4 is provided. The refrigerant flow passage 31 is provided with an HPS 36 as a pressure protection switch and a pressure sensor 37.

Therefore, the water circulation pump 13 is driven while the compressor 25 is driven and the water heat exchanger 26 functions as a condenser.
Drive (actuate). Then, stored water (hot water) flows out from the water intake 10 provided at the bottom of the hot water storage tank 3, and this flows through the heat exchange passage 14 of the circulation passage 12. At this time, this hot water is heated (boiled) by the water heat exchanger 26 functioning as a condenser, and the hot water storage tank 3 is supplied from the hot water supply port 11.
Returned to the top of. By continuously performing such an operation (hot water supply operation), high temperature hot water is stored in the hot water storage tank 1. This operation will be performed at midnight when the unit price of electricity is low to reduce the cost.

By the way, the bypass circuit 33 is for supplying the hot gas discharged from the compressor 25 to the evaporator 30 to perform a defrosting operation for defrosting the evaporator 30. Therefore, the heat source unit 2 is provided with a defrost control means (not shown) for switching between the normal boiling operation and the defrost operation. That is, in a normal boiling water operation, the water heat exchanger 26 functions as a condenser to heat the hot water passing through the heat exchange passage 14. When performing the defrost operation, the expansion valve 29 is fully closed, the defrost valve 34 is opened, hot gas is caused to flow through the evaporator 30, and the evaporator 30 is heated by the hot gas to evaporate. Avoid frost on the container 30. The defrost control means is configured using, for example, a microcomputer having a CPU, a memory, an input / output interface and the like.

Further, in the hot water storage tank 3, as shown in FIG. 1, a residual hot water amount detecting means 38 for detecting the residual hot water amount in the tank 3.
Is provided and the amount of hot water in the tank 3 is monitored. The residual hot water amount detecting means 38 is, for example, a plurality of (four in this case) thermistors 38a, 3 arranged at a predetermined pitch in the vertical direction.
8b, 38c, 38d. That is, the amount of residual hot water detected by any of the thermistors 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d is set as the amount of residual hot water required for boiling, and when the amount is less than this amount, the boiling operation is started. Here, the boiling operation is to store the high-temperature hot water in the hot water storage tank 3 by performing the hot water supply operation.

For this reason, the control unit 39 of this water heater supplies
As shown in FIG. 3, a setting means 40 for setting the required boiling water amount required for boiling, and a control means 42 for driving the boiling means 41 (which is composed of the heat source unit 2) are provided.
That is, the control means 42 compares the set value set by the setting means 40 with the detected value detected by the remaining hot water amount detecting means 38, and if the detected value is equal to or less than the set value,
The boiling means 41 is driven. In this case, any of the thermistors 38a, 38b, 38c, 38d can be selected, and the number of them can be increased or decreased and the arrangement pitch can be freely changed, and the boiling amount by the boiling means 41, that is, the heat source unit 2 can be selected. You can change it freely. Since the boiling amount can be calculated by (pump rotation speed × operating time), that is, the pump circulation amount × time, the boiling amount can be changed by changing this value.
That is, the boiling amount can be adjusted by increasing / decreasing the pump rotation speed or increasing / decreasing the operating time.

Further, the boiling required judgment remaining hot water amount can be changed (switched) based on the judgment remaining hot water amount change signal. Here, the determination remaining hot water amount change signal is constituted by, for example, a signal for supplying hot water from the hot water storage tank 3 to the bathtub (filling the hot water), and before and after the hot water filling, the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount is changed ( Switch). That is, the amount of hot water stored in the tank 3 is different before and after the filling of the water, and the required boiling water remaining amount (amount that serves as a reference for starting the boiling operation) is switched accordingly. Further, the amount of hot water used after the normal filling is different before and after the normal filling, and in general, the amount of hot water after the filling is smaller than that before the filling. Therefore, the boiling amount by the subsequent boiling operation can be small before the filling and can be increased after the filling.

The amount of remaining hot water required for boiling and the amount of boiling in the boiling operation are calculated by the remote controller 4 shown in FIG. 4 (a).
It can be changed with the buttons S and S of 3. In this case, the remote controller 43 is a remote controller for a general bath that performs boiling or the like. For example, a water filling operation button (boiling start remaining hot water amount setting button) 47 provided on the remote controller 43.
If the button is pressed, the △ button S and ▽ button S become switches for determining before and after the water filling. If the water filling operation button 47 is pressed again after setting the before and after water filling, the △ button S and the ▽ button S need to be boiled. It serves as a manual operation switch 44 for changing the determination remaining hot water amount. Then, after determining the required boiling water remaining amount and pressing the hot water filling operation button 47 again, the Δ button S and the ▽ button S become the manual operation switch 45 for changing the boiling amount, and the boiling amount is set. After that, if the water filling operation button 47 is pressed again, these settings are confirmed.
Note that this setting is performed, for example, again with the hot water filling operation button 47.
It may be released by pressing.

As described above, the remote controller 43 sends a signal to the control section 39 by pressing the manual operation switches 44, 45 and the like, and the remote controller 43 constitutes the setting means 40. Therefore, the buttons S, S are set to the state of functioning as the manual operation switch 44, and Δ (plus)
If the button S is pressed, the set value of the required boiling water remaining amount to be determined becomes large, and if the ▽ (minus) button S is pressed, the set value of the required boiling water determination required to become small, and the buttons S and S are used as the manual operation switch 45. As a functioning state, it is possible to set so that the set value of the boiling amount becomes large when the Δ (plus) button S is pressed and becomes small when the ▽ (minus) button S is pressed. . In addition, before and after the filling with hot water, it is possible to arbitrarily set the required boiling water remaining amount and the boiling amount. Here, changing the amount of remaining hot water required to be boiled means selecting the thermistors 38a, 38b, 38c, and 38d, and the amount of remaining hot water detected by the selected thermistor is required to be heated in this case. It becomes the judgment remaining hot water amount. In this case, the screen 49 of the remote controller 43
Indicates the before and after filling of water, each thermistor, and the boiling amount. Then, "Thermistor 1" on the screen indicates the thermistor 38a, and "Thermistor 2" indicates the thermistor 38a.
b, "Thermistor 3" indicates the thermistor 38c, and "Thermistor 4" indicates the thermistor 38d.

Next, the control operation before and after filling of the hot water supply apparatus configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In step S1, it is determined whether the water is before filling or after filling. Here, as a method of determining before and after filling with water, it can be determined by pressing the filling operation button 47 (see FIG. 4) of the remote controller 40. Then, if the water is filled in step S1 after the water filling, the process proceeds to step S2, and if the water is not yet filled in the step S3, the process proceeds to step S3. In step S2, it is determined whether or not the boiling start remaining hot water amount after filling is less than or equal to the boiling amount (the value after the filling is preset by the operation of the setting means 40, that is, the manual operation switch 44 of the remote controller 43), and step S3 Then, it is determined whether or not it is equal to or less than the boiling start remaining hot water amount before hot water filling (value before hot water filling preset by the operation of the setting means 40, that is, the manual operation switch 44 of the remote controller 43). That is, the amount of boiling start remaining hot water is made different before and after the filling of the hot water. If NO in step S2, that is, if the boiling start remaining hot water amount is exceeded, the process returns to step S1. If in step S2 YES, that is, if the boiling start remaining hot water amount is less than or equal to the boiling start remaining hot water amount, the process proceeds to step S4. Then, a predetermined set amount of water is boiled to return to the original starting state. If NO in step S3, that is, if the boiling start remaining hot water amount is exceeded, the process returns to step S1.
If YES in step S3, that is, if it is less than or equal to the boiling start residual hot water amount, the process proceeds to step S5, boiling is performed by a preset set amount, and the original start state is returned.

In this operation, the amount of boiling water to be replenished can be adjusted in consideration of the amount of hot water to be used thereafter, either before or after the filling. That is, before and after supplying hot water to the bathtub 20 (so-called filling).
The boiling amount by the boiling operation can be set arbitrarily. As a result, the boiling amount can be set to a small amount after the filling amount is low, and the boiling amount can be set to a large amount before the filling amount is increased. . Of course, if you plan to use a large amount of hot water after filling, you may set a large boiling amount. Conversely, if you do not plan to bathe even before filling, you can set the boiling amount. May be set to a small number.

That is, the boiling amount can be set according to the amount of hot water used, and it is possible to prevent the hot water run-down condition in which the hot water used is exhausted. In addition, the hot water storage tank 3 should be set so as not to store hot water during the daytime hours (the daytime hours here are times other than nighttime when the unit price of electricity in the current electricity rate system is low). You can As a result, it is possible to avoid an unnecessary hot water supply operation because the boiling operation of an unused amount is not performed.

The refrigerant circuit R of this hot water supply device is provided with a receiver 28 and a supercooling heat exchanger 27. The receiver 28 is for maintaining an appropriate amount of refrigerant circulation in the refrigerant circuit R. The supercooling heat exchanger 27 is for adjusting the amount of the refrigerant with which the receiver 28 is filled.
Thereby, an appropriate refrigeration cycle can be maintained and a stable boiling temperature can be maintained.

By the way, as another embodiment, it is also possible to change the boiling start residual hot water amount irrespective of the filling of the hot water. That is, when using a shower or the like, a predetermined amount of use may be set in advance, and switching may be performed before and after the predetermined use. In addition, the remote controller 43
As shown in FIG. 4 (b), a today's end button (boiling stop switch) 48 is provided, and by operating this switch 48, the determination remaining hot water amount change signal is transmitted, whereby, for example, 23: It is also possible not to perform hot water supply operation (boiling operation) until 00. Here, this 23:00 is the midnight power application start time at which the unit price of the power rate in the current power rate system becomes low.
Therefore, this switch 48 is provided, and this switch 48
By operating, it is not necessary to perform the boiling operation in the daytime when the unit price of electricity is high, and the cost can be reduced. In addition, if this midnight power application start time is changed,
In response to this, the boiling operation start time can be changed

Further, as another embodiment, the boiling start residual hot water amount may not be different before and after the filling, but only the boiling amount may be different before and after the filling. That is, the amount of remaining boiling start water is the same before and after filling, and the boiling amount before filling is different from that after filling. , Also in this case, each boiling amount is controlled independently (increase / decrease)
Can be made. As a standard for making the boiling amount different, as described above,
The today's end button 48 may be turned on. Also,
It may be preset so that the predetermined instruction signal can be transmitted, and the boiling amount may be different before and after the predetermined instruction signal. The predetermined instruction signal may be, of course, the determination remaining hot water amount change signal (in this case, the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount is not changed) or another signal.

As described above, even when "the amount of remaining hot water at the start of boiling is the same and the amount of boiling before filling is different from the amount of boiling after filling", the hot water storage tank 3 is prevented from running out of hot water. It is possible to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable and prevent unnecessary boiling, which contributes to cost reduction.

Although the specific embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various modifications can be carried out within the scope of the present invention. For example, even if a constant boiling amount is set for each boiling required determination remaining hot water amount, and when the boiling required determination remaining hot water becomes less than or equal to Good. Further, the hot water in the hot water storage tank 3 can be used for a dishwasher, floor heating, a panel heater and the like. Further, as the boiling means 41, the heat pump type heat source unit is used in the above-mentioned embodiment, but of course, other heat source unit using a heater or thermal power may be used. Further, in the remote controller 43 shown in FIG. 4, a manual operation switch 44 for changing the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount
Although the manual operation switch 45 for changing the boiling amount and the same button S, S are configured, they may be configured by different switches. Further, the remote controller 43 may be attached to the wall of the bathroom or the like, or may be detachable from the wall or the like and movable. As a method for setting the boiling required determination residual hot water amount and the boiling amount by the remote controller 43 shown in FIG. 4, various methods other than the button operation described above can be adopted.

[0039]

According to the hot water supply apparatus of the present invention, when the hot and cold water in the hot water storage tank is used and the boiling required determination residual hot water amount is reached, the boiling operation is started and the hot water storage tank is replenished with hot and cold water. It does not cause hot water shortage. This makes it possible to use the hot water without anxiety while not suddenly changing to the water during use of the hot water. Further, the criterion for starting the boiling operation is the determination remaining hot water amount change signal, and moreover, the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount can be changed based on this determination remaining hot water amount change signal, and unnecessary boiling operation is prevented. It is possible to save energy and contribute to cost reduction.

According to the hot water supply apparatus of the second aspect, efficient operation can be performed by making the required boiling remaining hot water amount before and after hot water supply. The cost can be surely reduced.

According to the hot water supply apparatus of the third aspect, the boiling amount can be set to the amount desired by the user. That is, normally, the hot water is not used much after the filling, but when it is necessary to refill the water or use the shower again due to a visitor, the boiling amount is changed again. It is convenient because the amount can be changed according to the tension.

According to the hot water supply apparatus of the fourth aspect, the boiling amount can be changed, the hot water in the hot water storage tank can be prevented from running out, the user is not uncomfortable, and unnecessary boiling is performed. This can be prevented, which contributes to cost reduction.
Moreover, independently before and after filling with water, etc.,
The boiling amount can be adjusted, fine control operation becomes possible, and highly accurate operation becomes possible.

According to the hot water supply apparatus of the fifth aspect, it is possible to easily switch the change of the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount, which is convenient.

According to the hot water supply device of the sixth aspect, the change of the boiling amount can be easily switched, which is convenient.

According to the hot water supply device of the seventh aspect, it is possible to prevent the boiling operation during the daytime when the unit price is high, and it is possible to reduce the cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a main part showing an embodiment of a hot water supply device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the entire water heater.

FIG. 3 is a simplified block diagram of a control unit of the hot water supply device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a remote controller used for the hot water supply device.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the hot water supply device.

[Explanation of symbols]

3 hot water storage tank 20 bathtub 44 Manual switch 45 Manual switch 48 boiling stop switch

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Takao Aizawa             2 of 1000 Otani, Okamoto-cho, Kusatsu-shi, Shiga             Daikin Industries, Ltd. Shiga Works (72) Inventor Shinichi Sakamoto             2 of 1000 Otani, Okamoto-cho, Kusatsu-shi, Shiga             Daikin Industries, Ltd. Shiga Works (72) Inventor Koji Senda             2 of 1000 Otani, Okamoto-cho, Kusatsu-shi, Shiga             Daikin Industries, Ltd. Shiga Works

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A hot water supply device in which the boiling operation is started when the amount of hot and cold water in the hot water storage tank (3) becomes equal to or less than the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount. A hot water supply device characterized in that it is changed based on a change signal. 2. The determination remaining hot water amount change signal is constituted by a signal for supplying hot water from the hot water storage tank (3) to the bathtub (20), and the boiling is performed before and after hot water supply to the bathtub (20). The hot water supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the required determination remaining hot water amount is changed. 3. The hot water supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the amount of boiling in the boiling operation is changed according to the subsequent usage situation. 4. A hot water supply device in which the boiling operation is started when the amount of hot water in the hot water storage tank (3) becomes equal to or less than the required boiling water remaining amount, and the boiling operation is performed before and after a predetermined instruction signal. A hot water supply device characterized by independently controlling the boiling amount. 5. The hot water supply apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the boiling required determination remaining hot water amount is set by a manual operation switch (44). 6. The water heater according to claim 1, wherein the boiling amount in the boiling operation is set by a manual operation switch (45). 7. A boiling stop switch (48) is provided, and by operating this boiling stop switch (48), the boiling operation is stopped until the midnight power application start time. Item 5. The hot water supply device according to any one of items 6.