JP2006255060A - Vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that reduction of odor is not sufficient in a deodorization filter mounted to a conventional vacuum cleaner since a suction quantity of the vacuum cleaner is large, so that a contacting period of the deodorization filter and exhausted air is shortened and efficiency is low. <P>SOLUTION: A catalyst housing part 6 is arranged at the ventilation upstream part of a dust collection part 3 of the vacuum cleaner to supply a catalyst 7 from the catalyst housing part 6 into the dust collection part 3, and a ventilation flue 9 for returning a part of exhaust from an electric blower 4 to the dust collection part 3 is provided. Thus, the odor occurring from dust is oxidized and decomposed by action of the catalyst activated by exhaust heat to reduce the odor of exhaust. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electric vacuum cleaner that removes the odor of dust sucked using a deodorizing material and reduces the odor of exhaust.

Conventionally, exhaust vacuum deodorization of vacuum cleaners has been proposed with a configuration in which a deodorization filter is mounted in the exhaust path, and in recent years, there is an idea of applying a photocatalyst to the deodorization filter and deodorizing by the oxidation action of the photocatalyst. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent No. 3238055

  However, in the method of installing a deodorizing filter in the above exhaust route, since the suction amount of the vacuum cleaner is large, the contact time between the deodorizing filter and the exhaust air containing odor is shortened, the efficiency is bad, and the odor reducing effect is also achieved. It had the problem of being small. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum cleaner that greatly reduces the odor of exhaust.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, the vacuum cleaner of the present invention has a catalyst storage part disposed upstream of the dust collection part of the vacuum cleaner and the catalyst is put into the dust collection part from the catalyst storage part. On the other hand, the vacuum cleaner is provided with a ventilation path for returning a part of the exhaust from the electric blower to the dust collecting section.

  With this configuration, the input catalyst mixes with the collected dust and adheres to the dust. On the other hand, a part of the exhaust is returned to the dust collector through the ventilation path, and the dust collector is heated by the exhaust heat. Therefore, the catalyst adhering to the dust is activated, and the malodorous gas generated from the dust is oxidized and decomposed by the effect of the catalyst. As described above, the odor generated from the inside of the dust is efficiently removed by a small amount of the catalyst, and the electric vacuum cleaner with very little exhaust odor can be obtained.

  In the vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the malodorous gas generated from the dust can be oxidized and decomposed by the effect of the catalyst, and the vacuum cleaner can have a very low exhaust odor.

  The first invention includes a dust collecting unit that collects dust, an electric blower that sucks air through the dust collecting unit, a catalyst storage unit that is located upstream of the dust collecting unit, and an exhaust from the electric blower. And a ventilation path for returning a part of the exhaust gas from the dust collection part to a suction path upstream of the ventilation part. The catalyst storage part stores a catalyst, and the catalyst is put into the dust collection part from the catalyst storage part. The charged catalyst is collected by using a vacuum cleaner in which a part of the exhaust from the electric blower returns to the dust collecting unit so that the catalyst is activated by the heat of the exhaust. Mixes with dust and adheres to dust. On the other hand, a part of the exhaust is returned to the dust collector through the ventilation path, and the dust collector is heated by the exhaust heat. Therefore, the catalyst adhering to the dust is activated, and the malodorous gas generated from the dust is oxidized and decomposed by the effect of the catalyst. As described above, the odor generated from the inside of the dust is efficiently removed by a small amount of the catalyst, and the electric vacuum cleaner with very little exhaust odor can be obtained.

  In the second invention, in particular, in the first invention, the catalyst to be charged is made into a powder form, so that the weight and volume of the catalyst per particle is reduced, and the catalyst is more effectively attached to the dust surface, and vice versa. In addition, since the surface area increases with the same weight, it is possible to remove the malodorous gas generated from the dust with a small amount of catalyst, and to deodorize more efficiently.

  The third invention is a vacuum cleaner in which heating means is disposed in the middle of the ventilation path, particularly in the first invention or the second invention. With this configuration, the catalyst is rapidly and reliably heated. Since it is activated, it is possible to decompose the odor gas of dust more effectively.

  In a fourth aspect of the invention, in particular, in any one of the first to third aspects of the invention, the catalyst is a catalyst containing any metal of manganese, copper, cobalt, titanium, gold, or a metal oxide. Thus, catalytic activity is possible even at a relatively low temperature, and the present invention using exhaust heat can be specifically configured.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in particular, in any one of the first to fourth aspects of the invention, the odorous gas generated from the dust is caused to act by the adsorbing material contained in the attached catalyst. More malodorous gas is adsorbed instantly, and the malodorous gas is then decomposed by the action of the catalyst. Therefore, compared with the case where no adsorbing material is contained, the odor generated from the inside of the dust can be removed instantly and in a large amount even before the catalyst is activated. Further, since it is oxidatively decomposed by the catalyst, there is no odor re-release, and a vacuum cleaner with very little exhaust odor can be obtained from the start to the end of cleaning.

  In a sixth aspect of the invention, in particular, in the electric vacuum cleaner of the fifth aspect of the invention, the adsorbing material contains any one of activated carbon, silica, alumina, and zeolite, so that a composite odor such as dust of the electric vacuum cleaner can be efficiently produced. Can be removed.

  In the seventh invention, in particular, in any one of the first to sixth inventions, since the catalyst contains an antibacterial material, the antibacterial material acts directly on the dust and the bacteria propagate in the dust collecting portion. Can be effective in terms of hygiene and odor.

  According to an eighth aspect of the invention, in particular, in any one of the first to seventh aspects of the invention, the centrifugal air cleaner that swirls the sucked air and dust and separates the dust by swirling is provided. The mixing effect and adhesion effect of the introduced catalyst are excellent, and the odor generated from the dust can be removed more effectively.

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

(Embodiment 1)
1 to 3 show a vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a dust collection box 3 serving as a dust collection unit that collects dust and an electric blower 4 that sucks air through the dust collection unit are arranged inside a housing 1 that constitutes the main body of the vacuum cleaner. Further, a suction port 2 is opened in the casing 1 on the upstream side of the suction airflow so as to collect dust in the dust collection box 3, and a connection hose (not shown) is attached thereto. Moreover, the wheel 5 is provided in the housing | casing 1, and the vacuum cleaner main body can be moved by this. A catalyst storage unit 6 is provided in the upper part of the connection hose connection unit 8 on the upstream side of the suction port 2, and the catalyst 7 is disposed therein.

  Furthermore, in order to return the exhaust of the electric blower 4 to the suction path upstream from the suction port, a ventilation path 9 is attached from the rear portion of the housing 1 to the vicinity of the suction port 2. Here, the air flow rate is set so that about 10 percent of the exhaust gas is returned to the suction path so that the suction force is hardly reduced.

  Here, a centrifugal cyclone vacuum cleaner that separates dust by a swirling flow is used, and its configuration will be briefly described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in the figure, air sucked from the downstream side of the first filter 22 by the electric blower 4 is first sucked from the air vent 21 of the dust collection box 3 and the air containing dust. Flows along the barrier 23. Here, the dust is further swirled by centrifugal force, and finally the second filter 24 filters the dust, and most of the dust stays in the dust storage unit 25 and is collected. The solid line arrows shown in the figure indicate the flow of dust, and the broken line arrows indicate the flow of airflow. Thus, here, a centrifugal cyclone vacuum cleaner that separates dust by a swirling flow is used.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the main part of the structure of the catalyst storage unit 6 provided in the upstream part of the suction port 2. Here, the bottom surface 31 of the catalyst storage unit 6 is formed of a 10-mesh wire mesh and is configured to open toward the bottom surface. A substantially rectangular parallelepiped catalyst 7 is accommodated here. The catalyst 7 is a powdered catalyst having an average particle size of 0.2 micrometers, which is a composite oxide of manganese, copper, and cobalt, which is solidified in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape using colloidal silica as a binder. And supported by the catalyst support 32.

  The catalyst support 32 presses the catalyst 7 against the bottom surface 31 of the catalyst storage portion by an external force, and moves in the front-rear direction of the vacuum cleaner here. By this operation, the catalyst 7 is rubbed against the bottom surface 31 to form a powdery catalyst 33 and flows out from the bottom surface, and is put into the dust collection box 3 by the suction force of the vacuum cleaner. Here, as an external force, the catalyst support 32 is moved in the front-rear direction by using a force when the cord reel of the vacuum cleaner is pulled out.

  The experimental result about a deodorizing effect is shown using the vacuum cleaner of the above structure.

  Using the electric vacuum cleaner of this embodiment, the actual room was cleaned for 15 minutes. As a control experiment, the room was cleaned for 15 minutes even without the ventilation path 9. This cleaning experiment was continued for 10 days, paying attention to the odor of the exhaust. The result was that the control experiment had a strong exhaust odor from the first day, but the present example sometimes had a slight odor at the beginning of cleaning.

  When the amount of dust sucked into the vacuum cleaner was compared, approximately 10 grams of both the present embodiment and the control experiment were sucked after 10 days of cleaning. Moreover, the catalyst 7 installed in the vacuum cleaner of this Embodiment was reduced about 0.3g. Therefore, an average of 3 g of dust per day is sucked and 0.03 g of catalyst is introduced.

  At this time, when the dust collected by suction was observed, it was confirmed that the catalyst 7 clung to the dust as the powdered catalyst 33 and the dust and the powdered catalyst 33 were mixed and adhered.

  Next, the temperature in the dust collection box 3 was measured in this embodiment and a control experiment. Both were about 20 ° C before operating the vacuum cleaner, but due to the operation for 15 minutes, in the control experiment without the air passage 9, there was almost no temperature rise at about 22 ° C, but the air passage was provided. In the present embodiment, the temperature was about 45 ° C., and it was in a heated state.

  From the above, the catalyst and dust are mixed and adhered by directly putting the catalyst into the sucked dust as in the present embodiment. Further, by attaching a ventilation path 9 from the rear part of the housing 1 to the vicinity of the suction port 2 and returning a part of the exhaust to the suction path, the exhaust heat of the electric blower 4 can be stored in the dust collection box 3 and attached. The activated catalyst can be activated to oxidize and decompose the odor generated from the dust, and the exhaust odor can be reduced.

  In this embodiment, a composite oxide of manganese, copper, and cobalt is used as a catalyst. However, in addition to this, manganese oxide, copper oxide, titanium dioxide catalyst, gold catalyst, etc. An active catalyst is effective.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 4 shows a vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, a heater 41 is arranged as a heating means in the middle of the ventilation path 9 in the first embodiment. Here, a 50 W sheathed heater was disposed.

  A similar experiment was performed here, and in this embodiment, compared with the case where odors were occasionally felt in the initial stage of cleaning, almost no odors were felt in the initial stage of cleaning. It was.

  This is because by arranging the heater 41 in the ventilation path 9, the catalyst activity can be given a rapid effect. In Embodiment 1, it took 5 minutes or more after operating the electric vacuum cleaner to raise the dust collecting part to 40 ° C. However, in this embodiment, it takes 2 minutes or less. Even in the initial stage, the catalyst is activated and the odor can be oxidatively decomposed.

  In this embodiment, the sheathed heater is used as the heating means. However, other than this, a film heater, a lamp, a heating element using a chemical reaction, or the like may be used as long as it can be heated.

(Embodiment 3)
Next, the vacuum cleaner in Embodiment 3 of this invention is demonstrated.

  In the present embodiment, in addition to the composite oxide of manganese, copper, and cobalt, which is a powdery photocatalyst having an average particle diameter of 0.2 micrometers, as the catalyst 7 in the first embodiment, a powder having an average particle diameter of 2 micrometers In the same manner, the catalyst was mixed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape using colloidal silica as a binder, and was placed in the catalyst housing 6 in the same manner.

  In this embodiment, the same experiment was performed. In this embodiment, compared with the case where the odor was sometimes felt in the initial stage of cleaning, in the present embodiment, from the beginning of cleaning until the end of cleaning. The smell was not felt.

  This is because when the catalyst contains an adsorbing material, the malodorous gas generated from the dust is instantly adsorbed by the adsorbing material contained in the adhering catalyst before the catalyst reaches the activation temperature. This is because it can be done. Further, the malodorous gas adsorbed on the adsorbing material is then oxidized and decomposed by the action of the catalyst as the temperature rises by returning the exhaust gas and the catalytic activity becomes stronger. Therefore, compared with the case where no adsorbing material is included, the odor generated from the inside of the dust is rapidly and abundantly removed and is not re-released, so that the electric vacuum cleaner with very little exhaust odor can be obtained.

  Here, hydrophobic zeolite is included as an adsorbing material. However, by including any one of activated carbon, silica, and alumina in addition to zeolite, it is possible to efficiently remove complex odors such as dust from vacuum cleaners. it can.

(Embodiment 4)
Next, the vacuum cleaner in Embodiment 4 of this invention is demonstrated.

  In the present embodiment, 1 part by weight of zeolite containing 5% of silver as an antibacterial material is added to 10 parts by weight of the catalyst 7 and solidified with colloidal silica.

  A cleaning experiment was conducted for 10 days in the same manner as in the first embodiment. At this time, 1 g of dust mixed with and adhering to the powdered catalyst was dispersed in water containing a surfactant, and cultured on an agar medium at 35 ° C. for 40 hours to examine the growth of the bacteria. As a control experiment, the one of Embodiment 1 was used. As a result, 99% or more of the antibacterial effect was confirmed in the present embodiment as compared with the first embodiment.

  From the above, since the antibacterial material is contained in the catalyst, the antibacterial material acts directly on the dust to prevent the growth of bacteria in the dust collecting part, and the odor is also reduced hygienically and the odor derived from the bacteria is reduced. It can also be effective in terms of. Here, silver is used as the antibacterial material, but other than silver, the same effect can be obtained as long as it exhibits an antibacterial effect such as zinc.

  As described above, the electric vacuum cleaner according to the present invention can greatly reduce the odor of exhaust gas, and therefore can be applied to business use as well as a home vacuum cleaner.

Sectional drawing of the vacuum cleaner in Embodiment 1 of this invention (A) Side view schematically showing the dust collection box in Embodiment 1 of the present invention (b) Front view of the dust collection box Sectional drawing which shows the structure of the catalyst storage part in the same vacuum cleaner Sectional drawing of the vacuum cleaner in Embodiment 2 of this invention

Explanation of symbols

3 Dust collection box (dust collection part)
4 Electric blower 6 Catalyst housing part 7 Catalyst 9 Ventilation path 33 Powdered catalyst 41 Heater (heating means)

Claims (8)

A dust collection unit that collects dust, an electric blower that sucks air through the dust collection unit, a catalyst storage unit that is located upstream of the dust collection unit, and a part of the exhaust from the electric blower. An air passage returning from the dust portion to the suction path in the upstream portion of the ventilation, the catalyst housing portion containing the catalyst, the catalyst being put into the dust collecting portion from the catalyst housing portion, and from the electric blower A vacuum cleaner in which the catalyst is activated by the heat of the exhaust gas by returning a part of the exhaust gas to the dust collecting unit. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the catalyst to be charged is in a powder form. The vacuum cleaner of Claim 1 or 2 which has a heating means in the middle of a ventilation path. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the catalyst contains any metal of manganese, copper, cobalt, titanium, gold, or a metal oxide. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the catalyst contains an adsorbing material. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 5, wherein the adsorbing material includes activated carbon, silica, alumina, or zeolite. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the catalyst contains an antibacterial material. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the dust collecting unit is a centrifugal type that swirls sucked air and dust and separates the dust by swirling.

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