JP2006136512A - Electric vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric vacuum cleaner which has a good usability while ensuring safety by controlling a motor at a low cost. <P>SOLUTION: This electric vacuum cleaner is equipped with the motor 1 which drives a rotary brush (not shown in the figure) for scraping out dust and dirt on a surface to be cleaned, an electric blower 3 for sucking in dust and dirt, a motor controlling means 5 which controls a dust collecting chamber (not shown in the figure) for collecting dust and dirt and the motor 1, an input controlling means 6 which controls the electric blower 3, a current sensing means 7 which senses the current flowing through the motor controlling means 5, and a temperature sensing means 8 which senses the temperature of the motor 1. When the temperature of the motor 1 has exceeded a specified temperature, the motor 1 is stopped, and at the same time, the stopping of the motor 1 is sensed by the current sensing means 7. Therefore, the rotational state of the motor 1 can surely be sensed at a low cost, and safety can be ensured. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly to a control method for an electric motor that drives a rotating brush for lifting dust.

  Conventional vacuum cleaners are generally configured as shown in FIGS. Hereinafter, the configuration will be described.

  As shown in the figure, the vacuum cleaner main body 50 has a built-in electric blower 51 for sucking dust, and a dust collection chamber 52 for collecting dust is provided on the suction side of the electric blower 51, that is, above. Yes. A hose 60 that communicates with the dust collecting chamber 52 is provided in front of the cleaner body 50, and the other end of the hose 60 is connected to a suction tool 80 that includes a rotating brush 53 and an electric motor 81 that drives the suction brush. 80, the hose 60, and the dust collecting chamber 52 form an intake path.

  Generally, a person who performs cleaning operates a switch 82 provided on the handle 54 in accordance with the state of the floor to be cleaned, and controls the operation of the electric blower 51 and the electric motor 81 that rotates the rotary brush 53. At this time, the electric motor 81 is cooled by the air flowing through the intake passage by the electric blower 51 (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

By the way, when dust accumulates in the dust collection chamber 52 and sufficient air does not flow in the intake passage, the electric motor 81 is not sufficiently cooled and heated. In preparation for such a situation, a temperature-sensitive element having a self-holding function is provided in the vicinity of the motor 81 to prevent the motor 81 from being in an abnormally heated state. Recently, there has also been proposed an electric vacuum cleaner equipped with a mode in which the rotational speed of the rotary brush 53 is lowered for the purpose of preventing damage to the surface to be cleaned.
US Pat. No. 6,533,611

  However, according to the configuration of the conventional vacuum cleaner, when the motor 81 is used in a mode in which the number of revolutions of the motor 81 is reduced, the torque of the motor 81 is reduced, so that it is easily locked. For this reason, in order to protect the motor 81 from overheating, a temperature sensitive element is provided in the vicinity of the motor 81 to prevent abnormal heating.

  However, in general, a temperature sensitive element, particularly a self-holding function type, is expensive.

  This invention solves the said subject, and it aims at providing the vacuum cleaner which is easy to use at low cost, ensuring safety | security.

  In order to solve the above-described conventional problems, the vacuum cleaner of the present invention includes an electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes dust on a surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, and a dust collector that collects dust. A chamber, motor control means for controlling the motor, input control means for controlling the electric blower, current detection means for detecting current flowing through the motor control means, and temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the motor. The motor is stopped when the temperature of the motor exceeds a predetermined temperature, and the current detecting means detects that the motor has stopped, and the rotational state of the motor is low-cost. Can be reliably detected and safety can be ensured.

  The vacuum cleaner of the present invention controls an electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes dust on the surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, a dust collection chamber that collects dust, and the electric motor. Electric motor control means; input control means for controlling the electric blower; electric motor drive availability detection means for determining whether the electric motor can be driven; and temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the electric motor; When the outputs of the detection means and the temperature detection means are not within a predetermined range, the electric motor is stopped. For example, the temperature of the electric motor becomes abnormally high or the state of the main body is in use. When not, the drive signal of the electric motor can be stopped reliably.

  The electric vacuum cleaner of the present invention can reliably detect the rotation state of the electric motor and ensure safety with an inexpensive configuration.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes out dust on a surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, a dust collection chamber that collects dust, and electric motor control means that controls the electric motor. , An input control means for controlling the electric blower, a current detection means for detecting a current flowing through the motor control means, and a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the electric motor, wherein the temperature of the electric motor has a predetermined temperature. The motor is stopped when exceeded, and the current detection means detects that the motor has stopped, and the rotation state of the motor is reliably detected at low cost to ensure safety. Can do.

  In the second invention, in particular, the electric vacuum cleaner of the first invention is provided with a switch for turning on and off the main body, and when the electric current detection means detects the stop of the electric motor, the switch is turned off with the switch. The electric motor is kept stopped unless the power supply to the main body is once cut off, and the electric motor does not start rotating unexpectedly even if the temperature of the electric motor is lowered.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes off dust on a surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, a dust collection chamber that collects dust, and electric motor control means that controls the electric motor. And an input control means for controlling the electric blower, an electric motor drive availability detection means for judging whether the electric motor can be driven, and a temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the electric motor, the electric motor drive availability detection means and the The motor is stopped when the output of the temperature detecting means is not within a predetermined range. For example, when the temperature of the motor is abnormally high or the state of the main body is not in use, the motor The driving signal can be stopped reliably.

  In the fourth aspect of the invention, in particular, the electric motor drive availability detection means and the temperature detection means of the third aspect of the invention are connected in series, and when the output is not within a predetermined range, the electric motor is stopped. It is possible to determine whether the motor can be driven and to detect the temperature of the motor at a low cost, and to reliably stop the motor drive signal when the motor temperature is abnormally high or the main unit is not in use. can do.

  In the fifth aspect of the invention, in particular, when the electric vacuum cleaner of the fourth aspect of the invention is provided with a switch for turning on and off the main body, and the electric motor is stopped when it is determined that the output of the temperature detecting means is not within the predetermined range In this case, the motor is kept stopped unless the switch is turned off or the power supply to the main body is once cut off. When the temperature of the motor drops, the motor starts to rotate carelessly. There is nothing.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in particular, when the electric motor of the second or fifth aspect of the invention is stopped and the temperature of the electric motor falls below a predetermined temperature, the electric motor control means is manually operated by operating the drive switch of the electric motor. The motor drive signal is output again, and even if the temperature of the motor decreases, the motor does not start rotating carelessly.

  In the seventh aspect of the invention, in particular, when the temperature of the electric motor according to any one of the first to sixth aspects of the invention increases, the determination value for stopping the drive signal by the electric motor control means, and the case where the temperature of the electric motor decreases. The determination value for enabling the output of the drive signal by the motor control means is different, so that the stop temperature and the driveable temperature of the motor can be freely set, and the severe use of the motor can be avoided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a side view of the electric vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a circuit block diagram of the electric vacuum cleaner.

  In FIG. 1, 1 is an electric motor that drives a rotating brush 2 that scrapes out dust on the surface to be cleaned, 3 is an electric blower for sucking dust, 4 is a dust collection chamber that collects dust, and 5 is a rotation of the electric motor 1. Motor control means for controlling the number, 6 is input control means for controlling the electric blower 3, and 7 is current detection means for detecting the current flowing through the motor control means 5.

  Reference numeral 8 denotes temperature detecting means for detecting the temperature of the electric motor 1, which is composed of a low-cost (self-recovering type) thermostat 9 in the present embodiment, and is connected to the electric motor 1 in series. When the temperature of the electric motor 1 rises and reaches a first predetermined temperature (for example, set to 120 ° C.), the thermostat 9 opens the closed contact, and conversely, the temperature decreases from a high temperature, When the temperature reaches a predetermined temperature (for example, 70 ° C.), the contact is closed again. Reference numeral 10 denotes a switch provided on the handle and operated when the user turns the operation of the main body 15 "on (on)" or "off (off)".

  About the vacuum cleaner comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement and an effect | action are demonstrated below.

  When the temperature of the electric motor 1 is low, since the contact of the thermostat 9 of the temperature detecting means 8 is closed, energization to the electric motor 1 is continued, and the current detecting means 7 causes some electric current to be supplied to the electric motor control means 5. Detecting whether it is flowing.

  Here, when the rotating brush 2 is operated at a low speed for a long time, when the load on the surface to be cleaned such as a carpet with a long bristle is large, the rotating brush 2 is locked, or the motor 1 itself is locked. 1 becomes a high temperature, and when the temperature detection means 8 detects the first predetermined temperature, the thermostat 9 of the temperature detection means 8 becomes an open contact, and at the same time, the current detection means 7 does not flow into the motor control means 5. Can be detected.

  If it is determined that the motor 1 has stopped, the motor control means 5 continues to output a stop signal for the motor 1 unless the switch 10 is turned off or the power is turned off.

  Thereby, even if the temperature of the electric motor 1 subsequently decreases and reaches the second predetermined temperature, the electric motor 1 is held in a stopped state.

  In the present embodiment, the current flowing through the motor control means 5 is detected. However, a rotation speed measuring means such as a tachometer for detecting the current flowing through the motor 1 and its rotation state may be used. In the above embodiment, the switch 10 for shutting off the power source is disclosed as the “off” switch. However, since it is important to stop the load such as the electric motor 1 and the electric blower 3, the signal switch (not shown) May be used to generate a “OFF” signal and process the signal with a microprocessor to stop the load. The power switch is not necessarily used as the “OFF” switch.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the electric vacuum cleaner according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a circuit block diagram of the electric vacuum cleaner. The same parts as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the figure, reference numeral 11 denotes an electric motor drive availability detection means for determining whether the electric motor 1 can be driven. In this embodiment, the rotary brush 2 is not driven, that is, a stand state in which the main body 15 is erected (FIG. 3A). Or the microswitch 12 for detecting whether the main body 1 is tilted to drive the rotating brush 2, that is, the cleaning state (FIG. 3B). Reference numeral 12 a denotes a lever of the micro switch 12.

  When the main body 15 is in a stand state, as shown in FIG. 3A, the lever 12a of the micro switch 12 is in an open state, so that the micro switch 12 is in an open contact state, but the cleaner is in a cleaning state. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3B, the lever 12a of the microswitch 12 is closed.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the temperature detecting means 8 is composed of a thermostat 9 and a fixed resistor 13 (for example, 1 kΩ) connected in parallel to the thermostat 9, and further the motor drive availability detecting means 11 and the temperature detecting means. 8 is connected in series, and this signal is input to the motor control means 5 as a divided voltage of the fixed resistor 14 (in this embodiment, the fixed resistor 13 has the same resistance value of 1 kΩ). .

  About the vacuum cleaner comprised as mentioned above, the operation | movement and an effect | action are demonstrated below.

  When the main body 15 is in the stand state, the microswitch 12 is in the open contact state, so that 0 V is input to the motor control means 5 regardless of the state of the temperature detection means 8. On the other hand, when the main body 15 is tilted and is in a cleaning state, the microswitch 12 is in a closed contact state, which is as follows.

  Since the thermostat 9 is a closed contact when the electric motor 1 is at a low temperature, 5V is input to the electric motor control means 5.

  However, when the motor 1 is at a high temperature, the thermostat 9 is an open contact, and 2.5 V is input to the motor control means 5.

Therefore, by the input voltage to the motor control means 5,
Stand state: 0.0 V ... Stop the electric motor 1 Cleaning state (high temperature): 2.5 V ... Continue to stop the electric motor 1 Cleaning state (low temperature): 5.0 V ... Electric motor Detection and control of driving 1 can be performed.

  Conventionally, the detection of whether the main body 15 is in the stand state or the cleaning state and the detection of high temperature or low temperature are separately input in two systems, but the fixed resistor 13 is added to the thermostat 9 as in this embodiment. Only by this parallel connection, it is possible to detect whether the main body 1 is in a stand state / cleaning state and detect the high temperature / low temperature of the electric motor 1 with a low cost system.

  When it is determined that the electric motor 1 has stopped in the cleaning state, the stop signal of the electric motor 1 is continuously output unless the “turn off” operation by the switch 10 or the power supply is cut off. As a result, even if the temperature of the electric motor 1 is subsequently lowered, the electric motor 1 is not inadvertently started to rotate and is held in a stopped state.

  In the above embodiment, the thermostat 9 and the fixed resistor 13 connected in parallel to the thermostat 9 are used as the temperature detecting means 8, but if a temperature detecting element such as a thermistor is used, a fixed resistor connected in parallel is not required. (For example, a determination value for stopping the drive signal when the temperature of the electric motor 1 rises and a determination value for enabling the output of the drive signal when the temperature decreases) Can also be set.

  Although not particularly shown, a drive switch for manually re-driving the electric motor 1 is provided, and after the electric motor 1 stops exceeding the first predetermined temperature, the temperature of the electric motor 1 decreases and the second predetermined temperature is decreased. When the drive switch is operated and the drive signal of the electric motor 1 is output again from the electric motor control means 5 at the time when the following condition is reached, the electric motor 1 is not activated when the temperature of the electric motor 1 decreases. It does not start to rotate in preparation, and when the temperature falls below the second predetermined temperature, the normal cleaning operation can be performed again by operating the drive switch.

  As described above, the vacuum cleaner according to the present invention has an inexpensive configuration, has few restrictions on the number of wires, reliably detects the stop of the motor, ensures safety, and is excellent in ease of use. Therefore, it can be applied to various vacuum cleaners and dust collectors for home use, business use, and store use.

The side view of the vacuum cleaner in the 1st Embodiment of this invention Circuit block diagram of the vacuum cleaner (A) Main part sectional drawing (stand state) of the vacuum cleaner in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention (b) Main part sectional drawing (cleaning state) of the same vacuum cleaner Circuit block diagram of the vacuum cleaner Front perspective view of a conventional vacuum cleaner Rear perspective view of the vacuum cleaner

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Electric motor 2 Rotating brush 3 Electric blower 4 Dust collection chamber 5 Motor control means 6 Input control means 7 Current detection means 8 Temperature detection means 10 Switch 11 Motor drive availability detection means

Claims (7)

An electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes dust on the surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, a dust collection chamber that collects dust, an electric motor control means that controls the electric motor, and an electric fan that controls the electric blower Input control means, current detection means for detecting the current flowing through the motor control means, and temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the motor, and the motor is controlled when the temperature of the motor exceeds a predetermined temperature. A vacuum cleaner that stops and detects that the electric motor is stopped by the current detection means. A switch for turning on and off the operation of the main body is provided, and when the motor stop is detected by the current detection means, the motor is stopped unless the main body is turned off by the switch or the power to the main body is once shut off. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the vacuum cleaner is continued. An electric motor that drives a rotating brush that scrapes dust on the surface to be cleaned, an electric blower that sucks dust, a dust collection chamber that collects dust, an electric motor control means that controls the electric motor, and an electric fan that controls the electric blower Input control means, motor drive availability detection means for judging whether the motor can be driven, and temperature detection means for detecting the temperature of the motor, and outputs of the motor drive availability detection means and the temperature detection means are A vacuum cleaner configured to stop the electric motor when it is not within a predetermined range. The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 3, wherein the electric motor drive availability detection means and the temperature detection means are connected in series, and the electric motor is stopped when the output is not within a predetermined range. A switch for turning on and off the operation of the main body is provided. When the output of the motor drive availability detection means and the temperature detection means connected in series is judged not to be within a predetermined range and the motor is stopped, the switch The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 4, wherein the electric motor is stopped unless the power is turned off or the power to the main body is once cut off. A manual motor drive switch, and after the motor stops, when the temperature of the motor falls below a predetermined temperature, the motor control unit again operates the motor by operating the motor drive switch. The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 2 or 5, wherein the air pressure can be controlled. A determination value for stopping the drive signal by the motor control means when the temperature of the motor rises, and a determination value for enabling output of the drive signal by the motor control means when the temperature of the motor decreases are different values. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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