JP2006249785A - Water purifier - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To completely throw away detention water, even if a plurality of faucets exist. <P>SOLUTION: A drainage mechanism 30 for draining tap water in a pipe is arranged in the pipe for connecting an domestic main pipe 16 and the faucet 22. The drain mechanism has a stop cock 34, a drain plug 36 and an automatic air suction valve 38. When becoming staying time to be drained, the stop cock is closed, and next, the tap water staying up to the faucet from the stop cock is wholly drained by opening the drain plug. After finishing draining, after closing the drain plug, the stop cock is opened, and a pipe up to a branch pipe from the domestic main pipe is filled with fresh tap water. The staying water staying in the whole branch pipes connected to a plurality of faucets, can be completely drained and thrown away. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a water purifier such as for home tap water in which a central water purifier is used. Specifically, when a central water purifier is used, a drainage mechanism that drains the tap water purified by the central water purifier from the water pipe is provided so that the purified tap water does not stay in the water pipe for a long time. Is.

  Recently, in order to drink tap water more deliciously or enhance the taste of dishes, many households are equipped with central water purifiers.

  In general, tap water is drawn into the home from the water main through the home main. And since the water meter is installed in the water main side of the house main, the centralized water purifier is normally installed in the secondary side (housing drawing side) of this water meter. Therefore, all tap water sent to the house is supplied with tap water purified by this central water purifier. Since the central water purifier is often installed near the water meter, this central water purifier is usually placed outdoors.

  A centralized water purifier generally has a function of purified water or live water or both (purified water). In the following description, it is assumed that it has a purified water function. Therefore, dechlorination treatment and sterilization treatment are performed in the centralized water purifier.

  There is a case where a family with such a central water purifier leaves the house for a long time by going on a trip. In such a case, the tap water in the home stays in the home water pipe for a long time. The stagnant water is tap water that has been dechlorinated as described above.

  Although it is tap water that has been sterilized by a centralized water purifier but has been dechlorinated, if it is left standing for a long time, germs will gradually grow and become unsanitary. It is conceivable that it stays.

  Patent document 1 etc. are known as one of the techniques for avoiding such an unsanitary state.

JP-A-8-284218

  By the way, the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 is such that a condensate pipe is connected to a water supply pipe, and forced circulation is always performed by a pump so that tap water is not retained.

  However, in this configuration, a condensate pipe must be connected to the water absorption pipe, or a pump must be connected to the condensate pipe, resulting in a large facility.

  Therefore, the present invention solves such a conventional problem, and allows the accumulated water to be drained without any major modification of the equipment, and even if many faucets are installed. The present invention proposes a water purifier capable of effectively draining accumulated water in a pipe line connected to a faucet.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in the water purifier according to the present invention described in claim 1,
A water purifier that is configured such that tap water purified by a central water purifier is supplied to each faucet through a main pipe and a branch pipe branched from the main pipe,
A drainage mechanism for draining tap water in the pipeline is provided in a pipeline connecting the home main pipe and the faucet.

  In this invention, the drainage mechanism for draining the tap water in a pipe line is provided in the pipe line which connects a main pipe and a faucet. In this drainage mechanism, a water stop detector and a drain plug are provided on the water flow detector provided on the water purification side, which is the secondary side of the central water purifier, and the main pipe on the secondary side of the water flow detector, respectively. . The drain plug is in the main pipe installed on the floor of the first floor, and if it is on the secondary side of the stop cock, its installation position is not limited, but it is close to the first floor wall of the main pipe It is preferable to be installed at the end. This is to make it easier to install the faucet of the drain plug outside the house.

  Both the water stop cock and the water drain plug use a solenoid valve, and the opening and closing can be controlled remotely. An automatic intake valve is provided at a position downstream of the water stop cock of the home main pipe and upstream of the branch pipe.

  The water flow detector detects the opening and closing of a faucet provided on the secondary side of the central water purifier. The water flow detection signal Sa obtained from the water flow detector is supplied to the control unit, and in this control unit, the time (period) in which all of the water taps installed in the home (home) are in the stopped state. Is measured.

  Since the stop signal Sb is obtained when the stop plug continuation time is equal to or longer than a predetermined time (residence time) Ta, the stop valve control signal Sx and the drain plug control signal are thereby obtained from the solenoid valve opening / closing control unit. Sy is output respectively. The specified time is set with reference to a time (for example, 240 hours (10 days) when the tap water staying in the home mains is in an unsanitary state, and preferably set to a time zone of about one week.

  The stop cock is stopped by the stop cock control signal Sx generated by the control unit. The drain plug is opened by the drain plug control signal Sy at the stage when the stop cock is closed. Then, the tap water staying in the main pipe in the house and in the plurality of branch pipes provided with the faucets is drained outside the house through the drain plugs. Since the drain plug is installed in the main pipe, it stays in the branch pipe connected to the water tap installed at a higher position than the main pipe, as well as the accumulated water in the main pipe. Any remaining stagnant water is drained through this drain plug. Therefore, the accumulated water does not remain in the home main pipe or the branch pipe.

  The time (drainage time) Tb for draining all the accumulated water varies depending on the total length of the main pipe and branch pipe in the house, so the time (for example, 1 to 2 minutes) with a certain margin is water. It is set as the extraction time Tb.

  After the draining time has elapsed (including at the same time), the drain plug is stopped by the drain plug control signal Sy. Thereafter, the stop cock is opened by the stop cock control signal Sx. Then, the inside of the home main pipe and the inside of the branch pipe are filled with purified tap water again.

  The control unit can also be controlled manually. A manual drainage signal Sc is generated by manual operation at a user's preferred time, and the stop valve control signal Sx and drain plug control signal Sy are also generated from the solenoid valve opening / closing controller by this manual drain signal Sc. Can be generated respectively.

  The tap water drained from the drain plug becomes waste water. If this discarded water can be discarded as it is, a secondary water tank may be provided outside the house, and the discarded water may be supplied here for secondary use. You may make it send. Both configurations can also be employed. In this case, if a small drainage pump is connected instead of the drain plug and the stagnant water is forcibly drained, the stagnant water does not remain.

  Moreover, in the case of the water purifier provided with the bypass pipe line that bypasses the central water purifier, one of the switching valves to which the bypass pipe line is connected can be used as a water stop cock. The bypass pipe is provided so that tap water can be supplied to the house even when the central water purifier is replaced.

According to the present invention, a drain plug is installed in a pipe line in the home main, and when the residence time of tap water becomes longer than a specified time, the remaining tap water can be drained.
According to this, forced drainage of stagnant water becomes possible, and there is no possibility of drinking unsanitary tap water.

  Since the drain plug is installed in the main pipe, even if there are a plurality of branch pipes connected to the main pipe, all tap water staying in the branch pipe can be drained. Therefore, it is possible to always provide purified tap water regardless of which faucet is used. Since the drainage mechanism can be composed of a stop cock, a drain cock, an automatic intake valve, etc., its facilities are relatively simple.

  Subsequently, a preferred embodiment of the water purifier according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing a basic configuration of a water purifier 10 according to the present invention. When the tap water is drawn into the house from the water main 12 installed on the road or the like, the home lead-in pipe 13 is connected to the water main 12 as shown in FIG. A water meter 14 is attached to the home lead-in pipe 13 to check the amount of tap water used. A central water purifier (central water purifier) 18 is attached to the water meter 14 side of the water pipe (hereinafter referred to as the main pipe) 16 provided on the secondary side (downstream side of the house) of the water meter 14. The tap water supplied to the house is purified.

  The central water purifier 18 generally has a function of purified water or live water or both (purified water). In the following description, it is assumed that it has a purified water function. Therefore, this central water purifier 18 performs a dechlorination process and a sterilization process.

  In this embodiment, the above-described main pipe 16 is a general term for water pipes that are piped to the first floor portion of the house. Therefore, a plurality of branch pipes 20 are connected to the home main pipe 16. Each of the plurality of branch pipes 20 is connected to a faucet 22 at its end portion. In this example, four faucets 22 are illustrated. Therefore, the branch pipe 20a for the kitchen, the branch pipe 20b for the bathroom, the branch pipe 20c for the bathroom, and the branch pipe 20d for the flush toilet are connected to each other at predetermined locations of the main pipe 16 to supply tap water. Is called.

  In this embodiment, a drainage mechanism 30 for stagnant water is provided in association with the home main pipe 16. The drainage mechanism 30 is a facility for forcibly draining unsanitary stagnant water that remains in the main pipe 16 or the like. The drainage mechanism 30 includes a water flow detector 32, a stop cock 34, a drain plug 36, and the like. Both the stop cock 34 and the drain plug 36 are solenoid valves so that they can be remotely controlled. I will explain in order.

  First, a water flow detector 32 is provided adjacent to the central water purifier 18. A stop cock 34 and a drain plug 36 are provided in the pipe of the main pipe 16 that is piped on the secondary side (branch pipe side) of the water flow detector 32. In this example, a stop cock 34 is provided on the water flow detector 32 side, and a drain plug 36 is provided on the terminal side of the home main pipe 16. Further, an automatic intake valve 38 is further installed in the home main pipe 16 located on the side of the stop cock 34.

  The drain plug 36 is installed on the main pipe 16 near the wall, on the same horizontal line as or below the main pipe 16. This is to make it easier to lead out the drain pipe of the drain plug 36 outside the house. Of course, it is also possible to pull out the drain plug 36 to the first floor wall using a conduit.

  The water flow detector 32 is for detecting tap water flowing through the home main pipe 16 and is installed in the home (indoor) in this example, but can also be integrated with the central water purifier 18. In that case, it will be installed outside (outdoor).

  Examples of the water flow detector 32 include an impeller-type water flow detector that directly detects the water flow state by inserting an impeller into the water pipe, a water pressure detector that detects the water flow state using the water pressure of tap water, and the like. Can be used. In the embodiment, an impeller type water flow detector is used.

  From the water flow detector 32, a water flow detection signal Sa accompanying opening and closing of the water tap 22 is obtained. Therefore, when any one of the plurality of faucets 22 is opened, it is detected that water has passed.

  The water flow detection signal Sa is supplied to the control unit 40 that forms part of the drainage mechanism 30. The control unit 40 is for measuring the residence time and performing valve control for the stop cock 34 and the drain plug 36.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 40 includes a residence time integrating unit 44 and a solenoid valve opening / closing control unit 46. The water flow detection signal Sa described above is supplied to the integrating unit 44. The accumulating unit 44 is for measuring the stoppage time (retention time) in which the state in which the faucet 22 is not used at all continues. In principle, the residence time is a time in which purified tap water stays in the main pipe 16 and the branch pipe 20 and may become unsanitary tap water. It is said that it is preferable not to drink for health because it becomes an environment in which various germs and the like easily propagate. Accordingly, a dwell time shorter than 10 days, for example, a period T corresponding to one week is set as the reference integrated time T0. The residence time can be replaced with the residence days.

  When the residence time T exceeds the reference integration time T0, a residence signal Sb is generated and output from the integration unit 44. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3A, the water passage detection signal Sa is obtained when the faucet 22 is opened and closed. The stoppage time of the water flow detection signal Sa becomes the residence time T, and when this residence time T becomes the reference integration time T0 or more, the residence signal Sb (FIG. 3B) is output from the integration unit 44.

  The stay signal Sb is supplied to the electromagnetic valve opening / closing control unit 46. As soon as the retention signal Sb is obtained, the solenoid valve opening / closing control unit 46 generates the stop cock control signal Sx, which is supplied to the stop cock 34. It is assumed that the stop cock (solenoid valve) 34 is controlled so that the stop cock (stop valve) is stopped when the level of the stop cock control signal Sx becomes high.

  When the stay signal Sb is obtained, it is plugged for a predetermined period Tx. A drain plug control signal Sy is generated with a slight delay Δa after the stop cock control signal Sx is obtained, and is supplied to the drain plug (solenoid valve) 36. It is assumed that the drain plug 36 is controlled to be opened (valve opened) when the level of the drain control signal Sy becomes high (see FIG. 3D).

  When the drain plug 36 is opened for the period Ty, air flows into the home main pipe 16 from the automatic intake valve 38, and the pipe internal pressure of the home main pipe 16 becomes the same as the external pressure. As a result, among the in-home mains 16 to which the drain plugs 36 are connected, tap water (retained water) staying in the in-home mains 16 on the secondary side of the stop cocks 34 is the drain plugs 36. It is drained through. At the same time, tap water (retaining water) in the plurality of branch pipes 20 connected to the home main pipe 16 is also drained through the home main pipe 16. As a result, even if a plurality of branch pipes 20 are connected, the staying water does not remain, and the staying water in all the branch pipes 20 can be reliably drained.

  The opening time Ty of the drain plug 36 is set shorter than the closing period Tx of the stop cock 34. Therefore, the stop cock 34 is opened after a predetermined time Δb has elapsed since the drain plug 36 was stopped. It is plugged. The reason for setting the times Δa and Δb is to absorb the deviation at this time because there may be some deviation in the operation time of the solenoid valve.

  Since the tap water purified by opening the stop cock 34 fills the main pipe 16 and the branch pipe 20, the purified tap water can be provided regardless of which faucet 22 is used.

  Although it differs depending on the length of the main pipe 16 and the branch pipe 20, etc., it is considered that the stop period Tx is about 1-2 minutes. The stop time Tx can be configured to be variable so that the user can freely set it.

  A manual drain signal Sc accompanying manual operation is supplied from the terminal 42 to the control unit 40 described above. When this manual drainage signal Sc is supplied to the electromagnetic valve opening / closing control unit 46 as shown in FIG. 2, the electromagnetic valve opening / closing control unit 46 is configured so that the generation process similar to the retention signal Sb is performed. Yes.

  Therefore, in this case, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, even when the dwell time T is shorter than the reference integrated time T0, if the manual drain signal Sc is obtained, the stop cock control signal Sx and the drain cock control are obtained. Since the signal Sy is obtained (see FIGS. 4C and 4D), the same waste water drainage treatment as in the case of automatic treatment can be realized.

  FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment. The same parts as those in the conceptual configuration shown in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  In the second embodiment, a mechanism for secondary use (reuse) of the accumulated water drained from the drain plug 36 is further provided. Secondary usage may be for watering or toilets.

  Considering such secondary use, it is considered that the drain plug 36 does not function sufficiently. In this case, a small drain pump 50 is connected to the home main pipe 16 instead of the drain plug 36. The drain pipe of the drain pump 50 is branched, one of which is piped to the middle water tank 52 side, and the other is piped to the tank 54 side for the flush toilet.

  The drain pump 50 is supplied with the same signal as the control signal Sy described above as a drive signal. However, since it is drainage by a pump, time Ty required for drainage can be set shorter than FIG.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual block diagram showing the third embodiment.
This 3rd Example is a case where it applies to what is provided with the bypass pipe line 60 so that the concentration water purifier 18 may be straddled. Therefore, the first switching valve 62 is provided on the water main 12 side of the central water purifier 18, and in this example, the second switching valve 64 is provided on the in-home main 16 side on the water flow detector 32 side. A bypass pipe 60 is connected to the switching valves 62 and 64. Since the first switching valve 62 is installed outdoors, it is manually operated in consideration of outdoor work, but the second switching valve 64 is controlled by a control signal Sz from the control unit 40. A solenoid valve that can be used is used.

  A manual operation switch (not shown) is associated with the control unit 40, and a manual operation signal Sd is supplied via a terminal 66. When the manual operation signal Sd is obtained, the same operation as that of the stay signal Sa is executed, so that the control signal Sz related to the manual operation is generated and supplied to the second switching valve 64. As a result, the second switching valve 64 is switched to the bypass line 64 side.

  Now, in the normal use state, the first switching valve 62 is switched so that tap water is passed to the central water purifier 18 side. Similarly, the second switching valve 64 is switched so that tap water that has passed through the water flow detector 32 can be passed to the home main pipe 16 side. Therefore, tap water does not flow in the bypass pipeline 60.

  When the residence time T exceeds the reference specified time T0, the control signals Sx and Sy are generated as described in the first embodiment. At that time, the second switching valve 64 functions as a water stop cock.

  When the central water purifier 18 is replaced or repaired, the first switching valve 62 is manually switched to the bypass line 60 side, and the manual operation switch is operated. When the manual operation switch is operated, the second switching valve 64 is switched to the bypass line 60 side by the control signal Sz generated at that time. If it does so, a water channel will change and tap water will flow to the main pipe 16 side via the bypass pipeline 60 side. At this time, it is not purified tap water.

  When the repair such as replacement is completed, the first and second switching valves 62 and 64 are controlled to be switched again so that the normal use state is obtained again.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the accumulated water can be used secondarily by using a drainage pump as shown in FIG. 5 instead of the drain plug 36.

  In this invention, it can apply to the water purifier provided with the centralized water purifier.

It is a systematic diagram of the principal part which shows an example of the water purifier which concerns on this invention. It is a systematic diagram of the principal part which shows an example of a control part. It is a wave form diagram with which it uses for the operation | movement description (the 1). It is a wave form diagram with which it uses for operation | movement description (the 2). It is a systematic diagram which shows the principal part similar to FIG. 1 which shows the other example of the water purifier which concerns on this invention. It is a systematic diagram which shows the principal part similar to FIG. 1 which shows the other example of the water purifier which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Water purifier 16 ... Home main pipe 20 ... Branch pipe 22 ... Water tap 18 ... Concentrated water purifier 30 ... Drainage mechanism 32 ... Water flow detector 34 ... Stop cock 36 ... Drain plug 38 ... Automatic intake valve 40 ... Control unit 42 ... Integration unit 44 ... Solenoid valve opening / closing control unit 50 ... Drain pump 60 ... Bypass pipe Path 62, 64 ... switching valve

Claims (6)

A water purifier configured to supply tap water purified by a central water purifier to each faucet via a main pipe and a branch pipe branched from the main pipe,
A water purifier, wherein a drainage mechanism for draining tap water in the pipe is provided in a pipe connecting the home main pipe and the faucet. 2. The water purifier according to claim 1, wherein the drainage mechanism comprises a stop cock, a drain cock and an automatic intake valve. In addition to being provided with the stop cock and drain plug on the home main,
The water purifier according to claim 2, wherein the automatic intake valve is provided at a position downstream of the water stop cock of the main pipe and upstream of the branch pipe. The water purifier according to claim 2, wherein a middle water tank or a flush toilet tank is connected to the downstream side of the drain plug. The water purifier according to claim 2, wherein a drainage pump is connected instead of the drain plug. A bypass line for bypassing the centralized water purifier is provided,
The water purifier according to claim 1, wherein clean water is poured into the pipeline drained by the drainage mechanism via the bypass pipeline.

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