JP2003302080A - Bathroom air conditioner, bathroom hot-water supplier and bathing time control device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bathroom air conditioner, a bathroom hot-water supplier and a bathing time control device which improves a blowing function and a hot-water adjustment function which is comfortable to bathers. <P>SOLUTION: This bathroom hot-water supplier 1 is provided with a sensor 55 for detecting that a person soaks himself in a bathtub and he goes out of the bathtub, a temperature sensor 53 for detecting the temperature of hot water in the bathtub, and a bath water heater 5. When the sensor 55 detects that a person soaks himself in the bathtub, timing for check of the hot water temperature by the temperature sensor 53 and for additional heating is reduced to automatically provide a heat-retention mode with accuracy. By this, additional heating is done in a shorter cycle, and a feeling of appropriate temperature of the hot water in the bathtub is improved while the person soaks himself in the bathtub. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bathroom air conditioner, a bathroom water heater and a bathing time management device which improve the comfort of a bather.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional bathroom air conditioner, a circulation fan is rotated to generate an air flow in the bathroom. While the device is in operation, the airflow is not noticeable while the bather is immersed in the bathtub, but when the bather is in the washroom, such airflow may directly hit the body and feel cold. For this reason, the bather may change the wind direction of the airflow to the wall or stop the device when he / she goes out to the washing room. Since such an operation is performed by the device body or the remote controller, at the time of operation, the user goes to a place where the device body or the remote controller is installed and manually operates.

Therefore, the present applicant has filed Japanese Patent Application No. 2001-13.
In No. 08, we proposed a bathroom heater / dryer equipped with a bathroom monitoring sensor in the bathroom. This bathroom heating dryer stops operation when the bathroom monitoring sensor detects a person in the bathroom,
The operation is restarted when it is detected that there is a person out of the bathroom, and the bathroom heater / dryer is operated only when there is no person in the bathroom. Thus, the bather does not feel cold air when in the washroom and does not have to move to stop the device or change the wind direction.
However, when the bather in the bathroom is immersed in the bathtub, blowing the air does not give the bather any discomfort.

Next, a hot water warming operation in the conventional bathroom water heater will be described. In a conventional bathroom water heater, the hot water temperature is checked every fixed cycle time, and if the temperature is low, additional heating is performed to keep the hot water temperature of the bathtub within a fixed range. This cycle time is generally 15-30
Set to minutes. Since the cycle time is relatively long in this way, when the hot water temperature of the bathtub is confirmed, even if the temperature is not required to be reheated, the temperature will decrease as time elapses within the cycle time. In this case, the time when the temperature of the bathtub is within the predetermined range becomes long, and it feels slimy.

Next, the bathing time management device will be described. The applicant of the present invention has proposed a bather abnormality detecting device including a bathing time measuring means and a warning means in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-703. This bather abnormality detecting device, when the bathing time measured by the bathing time measuring means exceeds a predetermined time,
A warning is issued from the warning means.

This bather abnormality detecting device is very effective for safety management of bathers. However, it has the function of giving a comfortable bath according to the bath temperature selected by the bather (time when the bath temperature is high and the time for the bath is not a burden to the body, and a guideline for bath time for half-body bath). Not not.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a bathroom air conditioner, a bathroom water heater, and a bathing time management device having an improved air blowing function and a hot water temperature adjusting function that are comfortable for a bather. The purpose is to provide.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a bathroom air conditioner according to the present invention comprises a sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in a bathtub and a person leaving the bathtub, and hot air in the bathroom. And an air conditioner for sending cool air, and when the sensor detects that a person is immersed in the bathtub, the air blower for the air conditioner is started.
In the present invention, it is preferable that the air blow of the air conditioning unit is stopped when the sensor detects that a person exits the bathtub. Further, when the sensor detects that a person exits the bathtub, the air direction of the air conditioning unit can be changed to the wall direction.

By performing the blowing operation only when the bather is immersed in the bathtub, the bather's annoying wind is prevented from hitting the bather. The bather's entry / exit to / from the bathtub is detected by a sensor and the operation of the device is automatically switched, so that the bather does not have to manually perform the operation. Further, it is possible to set whether to stop the operation of the apparatus or change the direction of the blown air when the bather leaves the bathtub, according to the bather's request.

The bathroom hot water supply device of the present invention comprises a sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and that a person exits the bathtub, and a water heater having means for confirming the temperature of the hot water of the bathtub and a reheating mechanism. When it is detected by the sensor that a person is immersed in the bathtub, the timing of checking the temperature of the hot water and the reheating time are shortened to automatically set the heat retention mode with high accuracy. By shortening the timing of temperature confirmation and heating when a person is immersed in the bathtub, it is possible to reheat in a short cycle, and it is possible to enhance the optimal temperature of the hot water in the bathtub while the person is immersed.

The bathing time management device of the present invention comprises a sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and a person leaving the bathtub, a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water in the bathtub, and the sensor. When it is detected that a person is immersed in the bathtub, a timer that counts the bathing time after detection, a memory that stores the relationship between the hot water temperature of the bathtub and the recommended bathing time, and the temperature sensor And an alarm that gives an alarm when the recommended bathing time corresponding to the detected temperature has elapsed. Depending on the bath temperature selected by the bather, it has a function to provide a comfortable bath, so that, for example, in the case of a half-body bath, stiff shoulder, repeated hot bath, etc. You can take a bath according to your purpose by notifying you of the appropriate bathing time with an alarm.

In the present invention, instead of the alarm or together with the alarm, a display device for displaying the bathing time counted by the timer may be provided.

In the present invention, a start button that is pressed when the person is immersed in the bathtub is used instead of the sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and that a person is leaving the bathtub. It may be that.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A description will be given below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a bathroom water heater and a main piping system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The bath water heater 1 has a main water heater 3 that supplies hot water to a bathroom, a kitchen, or a washroom, and a reheating water heater 5 that reheats the bath.
A water supply pipe 7 for supplying water from a water source to the main water heater 3.
And a hot water supply pipe 9 for supplying hot water to the kitchen or washroom. In the main water heater 3, the main heat exchanger 11,
A burner 13, a combustion fan 15, etc. are provided. Combustion gas is supplied to the burner 13 from the gas supply pipe 17 through the original gas solenoid valve 19 and the gas solenoid valve 21a. Then, the combustion air is sent from the combustion fan 15 and burned to generate flame and combustion gas. The heat exchanger 11 is heated by the radiant heat due to this flame and the combustion gas, and the water flowing through the water supply pipe 7 is heated. This hot water is sent to each location through the hot water supply pipe 9.

A bypass line 23 is connected between the water supply line 7 and the hot water supply line 9. Bypass line 2
3 is a three-way valve 25 connected to the water supply pipe 7. By adjusting the opening degree of the three-way valve 25, the water supply line 7 to the bypass line 2
The temperature of the hot water in the hot water supply pipe 9 can be controlled by changing the amount of water to be flowed to 3 and adjusting the mixed amount of hot water and cold water.

The hot water pipe 27 for the bath water heater, which is branched from the hot water supply pipe 9 of the main water heater 3, is a vacuum breaker 29.
Is connected to the circulation pipe of the additional heating water heater 5 via the check valve 31. The circulation pipe line is composed of a going pipe line 35 from the additional heating water heater 5 to the bathtub 33 and a return pipe line 37 from the bathtub 33 to the additional heating water heater 5. Vacuum breaker 29 and check valve 3
1 operates when the water supply pressure becomes negative due to water outage,
The water in the bathtub 33 is prevented from flowing backward.

The additional heating water heater 5 includes a heat exchanger 39 and a burner 4.
1 etc. are provided. For the burner 41, the original gas solenoid valve 1
9. Combustion gas is supplied from the gas supply pipe 17 through the gas electromagnetic valve 21b. Then, the combustion air is sent from the combustion fan 15 and burned to generate flame and combustion gas. The heat exchanger 39 is heated by the radiant heat of the flame and the combustion gas, and the hot water in the pipe is heated. The hot water temperature is detected by the incoming water thermistor 43 and the hot water exiting thermistor 45 provided in the pipeline. Further, a pump 47 and a water level sensor 49 are provided in the circulation line. The hot water is circulated in the circulation pipe by the operation of the pump 47.

The bathtub outflow line 35 and the return line 37 are connected to an adapter 51 provided in the bathtub 33. Bathtub 3
3 is a temperature sensor 5 for detecting the temperature of hot water in the bathtub.
3. A bather detection sensor 55 for detecting the entry of a person into the bathtub 33 and the exit of the person from the bathtub 33 is provided. As the bather detection sensor 55, for example, a weight sensor that measures the temperature of the entire bath, a sensor that measures the displacement of the amount of hot water in the bath, an infrared sensor, or the like can be used.

The thermistors 43, 45 and the sensors 53, 5
The output signal of 5 is sent to the control unit 57 of the reheating water heater 5.
Based on these output signals and a control signal from a remote controller (not shown) or the like, the control unit 57 controls the original gas electromagnetic valve 19, the gas electromagnetic valve 21a, the pump 47, etc. to perform the additional heating operation. The controller 57 also receives the outputs of the temperature sensor 53 and the bather detection sensor 55 provided in the bath 33.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the control unit of the bathroom water heater of FIG. FIG. 3 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between bathing time and hot water temperature. The vertical axis represents the proper bathing time, and the horizontal axis represents the hot water temperature. The control unit 57 includes a bathing time control unit (bathing time management device), an additional heating control unit, a memory, a timer,
It consists of alarms. A signal from a temperature sensor 53 that detects the temperature of the hot water in the bathtub 33 is input to the bathing time control unit, and the temperature of the hot water in the bathtub is detected. Further, a signal from a bather detection sensor 55 that detects that a person is immersed in the bathtub 33 and that a person has exited the bathtub 33 is input to detect whether or not a person is immersed in the bathtub 33.

Furthermore, a bathing mode set by the remote controller or the main body is input to the bathing time control section. The bathing mode is used to set the bathing method such as half-body bath, stiff shoulder relief, high temperature repeated bathing, etc. In each mode, the recommended bathing time and bath temperature are shown from the relationship between bathing time and bath temperature shown in Fig. 3. Is obtained. For example, if you want a half-body bath, the recommended bathing time is 20 minutes, and the bath temperature is 38 ° C (point P1),
If you want to eliminate stiff shoulders, the recommended bathing time is 10 minutes, and the bath temperature is 40 ° C (point P2). If you want a high-temperature repetitive bath, the recommended bathing time is 2 minutes and the bath temperature is 42 °
(Point P3). The numerical values of these times and temperatures are stored in the memory of the control unit 57.

The output of the bather detection sensor 55 is input to the additional heating control section. Further, in accordance with an instruction from the bathing time control unit, the burner 41 of the reheating water heater 5 and the gas solenoid valve 21b are operated to start combustion for reheating, and the pump 47 is controlled to supply the hot water of the bath 33 to the pipeline. It is circulated in the interior for additional heating operation.

4 and 5 are flowcharts showing an example of the control flow of the control unit of the bathroom water heater of FIG. First, in S1, it is confirmed whether the bather has set the bathing mode. When the bathing mode is set, the bathing time and hot water temperature corresponding to the set bathing mode are read from the memory in S2, and the bathing time and hot water temperature are set. In addition, when the bathing mode is not set in S1, the processes after S21 (see FIG. 5) are performed as a general bathing.

When the bathing time and the hot water temperature corresponding to the set bathing mode are set in S2, it is determined in S3 whether the hot water temperature detected by the temperature sensor 53 is the set temperature. If the hot water temperature is below the set temperature, S4
Then, the additional heating water heater 5 is operated by the additional heating control unit so that the additional heating operation is performed for a predetermined time. In addition, when the hot water temperature is higher than the set temperature (for example, the recommended hot water temperature for half body bath is 38 ° C)
If the temperature is higher), the temperature is set to the set temperature by adding water or the like (not shown).

Next, in S5, the bather detection sensor 55 detects whether or not a person is immersed in the bathtub. If the bather detection sensor 55 detects that a person is immersed in the bathtub, S
At 6, the timer starts counting the recommended bathing time. Then, in S7, it is determined whether or not the hot water temperature detected by the temperature sensor 53 is the set temperature in S8 until the timer finishes counting. If the temperature is equal to or lower than the set temperature, the process proceeds to S9, and the additional heating water heater 5 is operated by the additional heating control unit so that the additional heating operation is performed for a predetermined time. If the hot water temperature is equal to or higher than the set temperature, the temperature is lowered to the set temperature by adding water or the like (not shown).

When the timer finishes counting in S7 and the recommended bathing time ends, in S10 it is notified that the bathing time in the bathing mode set by the alarm or the display has ended. In addition, when the bathing mode has a condition that may give a load to the body (for example, when the hot water temperature is set to a high temperature), it is preferable to give an alarm. Or, as a kind of alarm, an announcement such as "Let's take a bath and take a break." This completes the control of bathing time and hot water temperature in the set bathing mode.

By such control, it is possible to control the bath temperature desired by the user in the bathing mode and automatically notify the recommended bathing time corresponding to the mode. The bathing time stored in the memory can be variably set by communication from a remote controller, a memory card, or an external device according to the season and the preference of the bather.

Next, with reference to FIG. 5, general bathing control when the bathing mode is not set in S1 will be described. In the case of general bathing, the hot water temperature of the bathtub is detected every predetermined time (cycle time), and the reheating water heater 5 is controlled so as to maintain the hot water temperature within the optimum temperature range (cycle operation). . If the bathing mode is not set in S1, the cycle operation is started. In S21, the timer is initialized to set the cycle time to a relatively long time (15 to 30 minutes in one example), and the timer starts counting. This time is the time until the temperature of the bathtub falls to the lower limit of the allowable temperature when the person is not immersed in the bathtub.
While the timer is counting, in S22, the bather detection sensor 55 detects whether or not a person is immersed in the bathtub. S
If the bather detection sensor 55 detects that a person is immersed in the bathtub at 22, the timer is reset at S23 and the cycle time is set to a time shorter than the above-mentioned time (2 to 3 minutes in one example). , S24, the timer starts counting.

Then, in S25, it is determined whether the hot water temperature detected by the temperature sensor 53 is within the set temperature range. If the hot water temperature is equal to or lower than the range temperature, the process proceeds to S26, and the burner 41 and the like are operated by the additional heating control unit so that the additional heating is performed for a predetermined time.

Then, in S27, it is determined whether or not the timer has counted the set cycle time. In addition,
The cycle time at this time is short when the bather detection sensor 55 detects in S22 that a person is immersed in the bathtub, and is long otherwise. If the timer has not finished counting, the process returns to S25. This is the end of the control of the control unit in the cycle operation. According to this method, the cycle time is set when no person is immersed in the bathtub at the start of the cycle operation, but when a person is immersed in the bathtub, the cycle time can be shortened from that point.

By such control, when a person is immersed in the bathtub, the temperature detection timing is shortened and the heating cycle time is shortened, and when the person is not immersed, the temperature detection timing is lengthened and the heating cycle is increased. I'm lengthening the time. Therefore, it is possible to enhance the temperature controllability when a person is immersed in the bathtub.

In this example, the bather detection sensor 55
Although it is detected that a person is immersed in or out of the bathtub, a start button to be pushed when the bather enters the bathtub may be provided. In this case, when the bather presses the start button while immersed in the bathtub, the timer starts counting and counts the time when the person is immersed in the bathtub.

FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the structure of the bathroom air conditioner according to the embodiment of the present invention. The bathroom air conditioner 71 is a heating radiator that is connected to the heat source device (or heat-refrigerant generator) 73 installed outdoors, and the heat source device 73 through a circulation pipe line including forward and return pipes 75 and 77. It is mainly composed of 79 and.

Inside the heating radiator 79, there are provided a heat exchanger 81, a circulation fan 83, a ventilation fan 85 and the like. The hot water heated to a predetermined temperature (60 ° C. as an example) by the heat source device 73 passes from the outgoing pipe line 75 through the heat exchanger 81, and at that time heats the surrounding air. The hot water that has passed through the heat exchanger 81 returns to the heat source device 73 through the return conduit 77.

The circulation fan 83 is arranged downstream of the heat exchanger 81, and when the fan 83 rotates, air flows from the air suction port 87 through the filter 89 to the heating radiator 7.
It is taken in. The air taken in is the heat exchanger 8
Circulating fan 8 is heated when passing 1 and becomes warm air.
By the rotation of 3, the air is blown from the air outlet 91 into the bathroom. The air outlet 91 is provided with a louver 93 with a wind direction changing function.

Operation and stop of the heat source device 73, circulation fan 8
The operation and stop of the air conditioner 3 and the ventilation fan 85, the control of the louver 93, and the like are controlled by a control unit 95 including a microcomputer provided in the heating radiator 79.

The bathtub 99 is provided with a bather detection sensor 97 for detecting the entry of a person into the bathtub 99 and the exit of a person from the bathtub 99. Bather detection sensor 97
Is, for example, a weight sensor that measures the temperature of the entire bathtub,
A sensor that measures the displacement of the amount of hot water in the bathtub, an infrared sensor, or the like can be used. The output of the bather detection sensor 97 is input to the control unit 95.

When the bather detection sensor 97 detects that a person is immersed in the bathtub, the controller 95 starts the operation of the circulation fan 83, and when the sensor detects that a person exits the bathtub, the controller 95. Controls to stop the operation of the circulation fan 83 and the heat source device 73. Alternatively, when the bather detection sensor 97 detects that a person exits the bathtub, the wind direction of the louver 93 may be changed to the wall direction. The airflow may be warm in winter and cool in summer.

By controlling the circulation fan 93 in this way, when a person leaves the bathtub and is in the washroom, the airflow does not directly hit the body and cause discomfort.

[0040]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a bathroom air conditioner that automatically controls the air blowing function depending on whether the bather is immersed in the bathtub. Further, it is possible to provide a bathroom water heater and a bathing time management device in which the adjusting function of the hot water temperature is controlled according to whether or not the bather is immersed in the bathtub to improve the heat retention accuracy. Further, it is possible to provide a bathroom water heater in which the hot water temperature and the bathing time can be automatically controlled according to the bathing mode.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration of a bathroom water heater and a main piping system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a control unit of the bathroom water heater of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing an example of the relationship between bathing time and hot water temperature.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a control flow of a control unit of the bathroom water heater of FIG.

5 is a flowchart showing an example of a control flow of a control unit of the bathroom water heater of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically showing an example of the structure of a bathroom air conditioner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Bath Water Heater 3 Main Water Heater 5 Reheating Water Heater 7 Water Supply Pipe 9 Hot Water Supply Pipe Piping 11 Main Heat Exchanger 13 Burner 15 Combustion Fan 17 Gas Supply Pipe 19 Original Gas Solenoid Valve 21 Gas Solenoid Valve 23 Bypass Pipeline 25 Three-way valve 27 Hot water pipe for bath water heater 29 Vacuum breaker 31 Check valve 33 Bathtub 35 Forward line 37 Return line 39 Heat exchanger 41 Burner 43 Inlet thermistor 45 Outlet thermistor 47 Pump 49 Water level sensor 51 Adapter 53 Temperature sensor 55 Bather Detection sensor 57 Control unit 71 Bathroom air conditioner 73 Heat source device (or heat refrigerant generator) 75 Forward pipe 77 Return pipe 79 Heating radiator 81 Heat exchanger 83 Circulation fan 85 Ventilation fan 87 Air intake port 89 Filter 91 Air outlet port 93 Louver with control function of wind direction 95 Control 97 Bathers Intellectual sensor 99 bathtub

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) F24H 1/00 602 F24H 1/00 602C F term (reference) 3L024 CC11 DD06 DD13 DD14 DD17 DD22 DD27 EE02 EE13 FF02 FF11 FF18 GG03 GG04 GG06 GG38 GG41 GG42 GG43 HH22 HH31 3L056 BF01 3L060 AA06 CC11 3L072 AA05 AB06 AC01 4C094 AA01 BA24 CC17 DD14 EE20 FF17 FF18 GG03 GG12

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and that a person is leaving the bathtub, and an air-conditioning unit for sending warm air and cool air into the bathroom, wherein the sensor prevents the person from being immersed in the bathtub. When it is detected that the air conditioning means starts to blow air, the bathroom air conditioner. 2. The bathroom air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein, when the sensor detects that a person exits the bathtub, the air blowing of the air conditioning unit is stopped. 3. The bathroom air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein when the sensor detects that a person exits the bathtub, the direction of the air blown by the air conditioner is changed to the wall. 4. A sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and that a person leaves the bathtub, and a water heater having a hot water temperature confirmation means and a reheating mechanism of the bathtub. A bathroom water heater, characterized in that, when it is detected that a person is immersed in a bathtub, the timing of confirming the temperature of the hot water and the reheating time are shortened to automatically set the heat insulation mode with high accuracy. 5. A sensor for detecting a person immersed in the bathtub and a person leaving the bathtub, a temperature sensor for detecting a temperature of hot water in the bathtub, and a person immersed in the bathtub by the sensor. When the temperature is detected, a timer that counts the bathing time after detection, a memory that stores the relationship between the hot water temperature of the bathtub and the recommended bathing time, and a recommendation that corresponds to the temperature detected by the temperature sensor An apparatus for bathing time management, comprising: an alarm that issues an alarm when the bathing time has elapsed. 6. The bathing time management device according to claim 5, further comprising a display for displaying the bathing time counted by the timer, instead of the alarm or together with the alarm. 7. A start button, which is pressed when submerging into the bathtub, in place of or together with the sensor for detecting that a person is immersed in the bathtub and that a person exits the bathtub. The bathing time management device according to claim 5 or 6.