JP2004263961A - Drinking water supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drinking water supply device for sanitarily holding drinking water even if a sealing body is polluted by various bacteria when installing the sealing body in a vessel. <P>SOLUTION: This drinking water supply device 1 has a loading part 3 detachably loaded with the vessel 15 of the drinking water, a cooling pipe 10, and an injection pipe 11, and has a tank for storing the drinking water flowing down from the vessel, cooling the stored drinking water by the cooling pipe 10, and injecting the cooled drinking water by the injection pipe 11. The loading part 3 is provided with a receiving tool 4 for receiving the sealing body 16 installed in an outflow port of the vessel instead of a cap, and provided with a surface heater 5 for heating and sterilizing the sealing body. The tank 7 is provided with a bactericidal lamp 9 for sterilizing the inside drinking water. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a drinking water supply device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
BACKGROUND ART Conventionally, there has been known a drinking water supply device in which a commercially available container containing drinking water is loaded, and drinking water is supplied without using a pump by utilizing a head difference (for example, Patent Document 1). reference).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3089451 [0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the drinking water supply device uses a container such as a plastic bottle containing drinking water such as mineral water or purified water as a source of drinking water for the purpose of easily preparing sanitary and delicious drinking water.
[0005]
However, since the drinking water supply device attaches the container that is the supply source of the drinking water to the container support means in an overturned state with the outlet facing downward, the drinking water does not flow out of the outlet of the container at the time of attachment. Thus, instead of the cap originally attached, a seal with a check valve is attached to the outlet. For this reason, when attaching the container to the container or loading the container into the drinking water supply device, an operator's hand touches the container or the ambient air is contaminated with various bacteria. May be In particular, since the drinking water supply device continuously supplies drinking water by sequentially replacing the containers, in order to supply sanitary drinking water for a long period of time, the sealing body accompanying the container replacement is required. It was necessary to consider measures for bacterial contamination.
[0006]
The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems caused by the prior art, and is capable of maintaining drinking water in a sanitary manner even when microbial contamination occurs in the sealed body when the sealed body is attached to a container. It is an object to provide a water supply device.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, a drinking water supply device according to the invention of claim 1 includes a loading unit into which a drinking water container is detachably loaded, a cooling unit, and a discharging unit. And a tank for storing the drinking water flowing down from the container, cooling the stored drinking water by the cooling unit, and discharging the cooled drinking water by the pouring unit. In the apparatus, the loading unit receives a sealing body attached to the outlet of the container instead of the cap, and a receiving device provided with a heating unit that heats and sterilizes the sealing body is disposed. And a germicidal lamp for sterilizing the drinking water therein.
[0008]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, even when bacteria are attached to the sealed body when attached to the outlet of the container, heat sterilization is performed without changing the time by the heating means. Even if it flows, it is sterilized by a germicidal lamp.
[0009]
Further, in the drinking water supply device according to a second aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the sealing member regulates outflow of the drinking water when the container is attached to or detached from the loading portion, and the regulation is performed by loading. Is provided with a check valve for releasing the pressure.
[0010]
According to the invention of claim 2, when the container is loaded into the loading section or when the container is removed from the loading section, the check valve is regulated so that the drinking water does not flow out.
[0011]
Further, in the drinking water supply device according to a third aspect of the present invention, in the above invention, the loading section is provided with a detection unit that detects whether or not the container is loaded.
[0012]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, when it is detected that the container is loaded in the loading section, the sealed body is heated and sterilized by the heating means without changing the time.
[0013]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a drinking water supply device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0014]
(Embodiment 1)
First, a first embodiment of the drinking water supply device according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a sectional front view showing a schematic configuration of a drinking water supply device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the drinking water supply device 1 has a loading unit 3 and a tank 7 built in a cabinet 2, and a tray 2 a on which a cup C of drinking water is provided at a front part of the cabinet 2. Have been.
[0015]
As shown in FIG. 1, the loading section 3 is provided at the upper part of the cabinet 2 and is removably loaded in a state where a container 15 such as a commercially available PET bottle is inverted. At this time, the container 15 is loaded in a state where a sealing body 16 called a base is attached instead of the cap originally attached to the outlet 15a (see FIGS. 2 and 3). As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, two receivers 4 are arranged in the loading unit 3.
[0016]
The receiving member 4 has a pipe-shaped connecting portion 4b integrally formed at the center lower portion of the cup-shaped main body 4a, receives the sealing body 16, and has a flexible surface heater 5 attached to the outer periphery of the main body 4a. ing. The receiving device 4 is appropriately selected according to the size and shape of the outlet 15a of the container 15, and the number thereof can be arbitrarily set. As shown in FIG. 2, the loading section 3 is provided with a switch 6 such as a micro switch or a limit switch as a detecting means for detecting whether or not the container 15 is loaded.
[0017]
Here, the switch 6 has a main body 6a provided with a lever 6b and a push button 6c which is pressed by a swing operation of the lever 6b. When the switch 6 is loaded with the container 15 in the loading section 3, as shown in FIG. 2, the end of the lever 6b comes into contact with the side surface of the container 15 and is pushed. As a result, the push button 6c is pushed by the lever 6b. Turned on. On the other hand, when the container 15 is removed from the loading section 3, the switch 6 is turned off by the reverse operation.
[0018]
On the other hand, the surface heater 5 is energized by an ON signal from the switch 6 when the container 15 is loaded into the loading unit 3 and heats the encapsulating body 16 via the receiving member 4 at a predetermined temperature for a certain period of time due to heat generated by the energization. For example, it is set to sterilize by heating at 60 ° C. for 5 minutes or more. At this time, an indicator lamp is provided at an appropriate place in the cabinet 2, and this indicator lamp is turned on only during the energization to indicate that the heating is being sterilized.
[0019]
Here, there is a possibility that the sealing body 16 may be contaminated with various germs due to the mounting operation accompanying the replacement of the container 15. For this reason, it is preferable that the surface heater 5 be set so as to be energized without delay when the container 15 is loaded into the loading unit 3 and to heat and sterilize the sealing body 16. However, the surface heater 5 is provided with an operation switch in the cabinet 2 in advance, and when the loading unit 3 is loaded with the container 15, the operation switch is pressed to energize the sealing unit 16 for a certain period of time, and the sealing body 16 satisfies the above conditions. The sealing body 16 may be periodically heat-sterilized by heat sterilizing it downward, or by periodically energizing the surface heater 5 for a certain period of time.
[0020]
The tank 7 is formed by covering a metal tank such as stainless steel with a heat insulating material such as urethane foam, except for a portion around which a cooling pipe 10 to be described later is wound. As shown in FIG. Is connected to the connecting portion 4b of each receiving member 4 by a water supply pipe 8 which is branched into two. One end of a germicidal lamp 9 inserted into the tank 7 is removably attached to the upper part in a watertight state, and a cooling pipe 10 as an evaporator of a refrigerator (not shown) is wound around the outer periphery. The germicidal lamp 9 is constantly turned on while the drinking water supply device 1 is in use, and sterilizes drinking water in the tank 7 with ultraviolet rays. The cooling pipe 10 cools the drinking water in the tank 7 to a preset temperature. One end of the tank 7 is inserted near the bottom of the inside, the other end is extended to the outside, and an outlet pipe 11 for discharging cooled drinking water is provided, and a lower part has a drain cock 12a. A drain pipe 12 is provided. The discharge pipe 11 is provided with a manual valve 11a for discharging drinking water at an end located above the tray 2a. The manual valve 11a is provided at a position where the drinking water is poured out due to a head difference from the level of the drinking water in the container 15.
[0021]
The sealing body 16 is attached in place of the cap originally attached to the outlet 15a of the commercially available container 15, and as shown in FIG. 3, a screw portion 16b similar to the cap is provided on the main body 16a. A check valve formed on the inner periphery and having a valve body 16c and a push spring 16d for regulating the outflow of drinking water when the container 15 is loaded into the loading section 3 is provided inside. Therefore, in the sealing body 16, when the container 15 is not loaded into the loading section 3, the valve body 16c is pressed by the pressing spring 16d to close the opening 16e of the main body 16a, thereby restricting the outflow of drinking water (FIG. 3). On the other hand, when the container 15 is loaded into the loading section 3, the valve body 16c is pushed back by the holder 4, and the opening 16e is opened (see FIG. 2). Therefore, in the container 15, the drinking water inside flows down from the connection portion 4b to the tank 7 through the opening 16e. However, in the receiving device 4, as shown in FIG. 3, since the sealing body 16 is immersed in the drinking water, the outflow stops at a position where the head of water in the container 15 and the atmospheric pressure are balanced. .
[0022]
The drinking water supply device 1 is configured as described above, and when the manual valve 11a is rotated, the inside of the tank 7 is cooled by the head difference between the position of the manual valve 11a and the surface of the drinking water in the container 15. Drinking water is supplied into the cup C through the water injection pipe 11. As described above, the drinking water supply device 1 can easily and repeatedly supply the drinking water to the cup C at any time by rotating the manual valve 11a so that delicious drinking water that is hygienic and cooled to an appropriate temperature can be easily and repeatedly supplied.
[0023]
As shown in FIG. 2, the drinking water supply device 1 pulls up the container 15 and pulls out the sealing body 16 from the receiving device 4 when the drinking water in the container 15 is almost exhausted as shown in FIG. Then, the container 15 is removed from the loading unit 3 and replaced with a new container 15. At this time, when the used container 15 is pulled up at the time of replacement with a new container 15, the drinking water supply device 1 releases the contact between the end of the lever 6b and the side surface of the container 15 as shown in FIG. Then, the pressing of the push button 6c by the lever 6b is released, and the switch 6 is turned off. When the container 15 is pulled up, the sealing body 16 releases the contact between the valve body 16c and the receiving member 4, and as a result, as shown in FIG. 3, the valve body 16c is pressed by the pressing spring 16d. Since the opening 16e of the main body 16a is closed, even if drinking water remains in the container 15, it does not flow out.
[0024]
Next, a new container 15 to which a new sealing body 16 is attached in advance is turned over and held, and the sealing body 16 is arranged in the receiving tool 4 and the container 15 is loaded into the loading section 3. At this time, since the sealing body 16 has the valve body 16c pressed by the pressing spring 16d and closes the opening 16e of the main body 16a, the drinking water does not flow out of the outlet 15a. Then, when the container 15 is loaded into the loading section 3, in the drinking water supply device 1, the valve 16c is pushed back by the receiving member 4, and the opening 16e is opened (see FIG. 2). The drinking water in 15 flows out through opening 16e.
[0025]
In parallel with the loading of the new container 15 into the loading section 3 in this manner, as shown in FIG. 2, the end of the lever 6b comes into contact with the side surface of the container 15 and is pushed. Is pushed by the lever 6b to turn on the switch 6. As a result, the surface heater 5 is energized, and the sealing body 16 is heated and sterilized via the holder 4 under the preset conditions of 60 ° C. and 5 minutes or more. While the surface heater 5 is energized, the display lamp provided on the cabinet 2 indicates that the sealing body 16 is being heated and sterilized.
[0026]
As described above, in the drinking water supply device 1, even if the sealing body 16 is contaminated with various bacteria due to the work of attaching the sealing body 16 to the container 15 when a new container 15 is loaded, the sealing body 16 Is sterilized by heating by the surface heater 5 without changing the time. Moreover, even if a small amount of germs scrape through the heat sterilization of the sealing body 16 by the surface heater 5 and even a little flows into the tank 7, the bacteria are sterilized by the germicidal lamp 9 provided in the tank 7, so that drinking water can be used for a long time. For a long time.
[0027]
In addition, although the drinking water supply device 1 in the above-mentioned embodiment provided one germicidal lamp 9 in the tank 7, the number of germicidal lamps 9 may be plural. In addition, the drinking water supply device 1 has been described in the case where the number of the containers 15 for the drinking water is two, but the number of the containers 15 is not limited to two. By setting arbitrarily, it can be set to an arbitrary number. Further, the container 15 may be a glass bottle, an aluminum can, or a steel can, in addition to a plastic bottle, as long as the container 15 can be used with the sealing body 16 attached.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, in the drinking water supply device including the loading unit and the tank, the loading unit receives the sealing body attached to the outlet of the container instead of the cap. A receiver provided with a heating means for heating and sterilizing the sealed body is arranged, and the tank is provided with a germicidal lamp for sterilizing drinking water therein. Even if microbial contamination occurs in the body, the heating means heats and sterilizes the sealed body and the germicidal lamp sterilizes the drinking water in the tank, so that the drinking water supply device can maintain drinking water in a sanitary manner. It has the effect of being able to do it.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional front view showing a schematic configuration of a drinking water supply device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion A in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the container is slightly lifted from a loading unit in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Drinking water supply apparatus 2 Cabinet 2a Tray 3 Loading part 4 Receiver 4a Main body 4b Connection part 5 Surface heater 6 Switch 6a Main body 6b Lever 6c Push button 7 Tank 8 Water supply pipe 9 Sterilization lamp 10 Cooling pipe 11 Discharge pipe 11a Manual valve 12 drain pipe 12a drain cock 15 container 15a outflow port 16 sealing body 16a body 16b screw portion 16c valve body 16d pressing spring 16e opening C cup

Claims (3)

A loading unit into which a drinking water container is detachably loaded,
It has a cooling means and a discharging means, stores drinking water flowing down from the container, and the stored drinking water is cooled by the cooling means, and the cooled drinking water is discharged by the discharging means. Tank and
In a drinking water supply device comprising
The loading unit receives a sealed body attached to the outlet of the container instead of the cap, and a receiver provided with a heating unit that heats and sterilizes the sealed body is disposed.
The said tank is provided with the germicidal lamp which sterilizes drinking water inside, The drinking water supply apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The said sealing body is provided with the check valve which controls the outflow of the said drinking water at the time of loading the said container into the said loading part, and cancels the said restriction | limiting by loading, The said 1st aspect is characterized by the above-mentioned. A drinking water supply device according to claim 1. The drinking water supply device according to claim 1, wherein the loading unit is provided with a detection unit that detects whether the container is loaded.

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