JP2006289170A - Air cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air cleaner ensuring a sufficient area of the filter unit capturing fine dust from air after collection of coarse dust with a cyclone system and allowing its construction in a relatively thin form. <P>SOLUTION: A filter unit 20 is arranged within the cleaner 1 in such a way as to make the dust-capturing surface vertical, and the front surface of the unit 20 is covered with a front panel 11. A swinging chamber 40 and a coarse dust collecting chamber 50 are formed on the back surface of the front panel. The swinging chamber 40 swings in-door air introduced from an inlet port 41 in the vertical plane at a high speed to centrifuge coarse dust P in the air. The coarse dust collecting chamber 50 is communicated with the inside peripheral surface section of the swinging chamber 40 through a circular slit 47, and coarse dust P coming in from the slit 47 is received with and collected in a dust box 52 in the lower part of the coarse dust collecting chamber 50. A damper 43 disposed in the inlet port increases in opening in proportion to the amount of sucked air, giving stably a wind velocity necessary for centrifugation of coarse dust P. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an air cleaner that removes contaminants such as dust and tobacco smoke from indoor air.

  In modern life, various kinds of fine particles that affect health, such as pollen and dust, enter the house through openings in various places. For this reason, the need for air purifiers is increasing year by year.

  The air cleaner circulates room air and collects dust and contaminants floating in the air with a filter. There are various levels of objects floating in the air, and the usual structure is to collect them step by step in order from the largest. Of these, the level called “coarse dust” such as cotton dust was often collected by a net-like “prefilter”.

If the air purifier is used for a long period of time, coarse dust accumulates on the filter, and bad odor is generated, or the dust collecting ability decreases due to an increase in ventilation resistance. For this reason, it was necessary to clean the filter in accordance with the degree of coarse dust accumulation, and in some cases to replace the filter. Therefore, the idea of collecting coarse dust with a cyclone device has been born in order to reduce the trouble of cleaning the filter. The example of the air cleaner provided with the cyclone apparatus in patent document 1 can be seen.
JP 2002-349918 A (page 3 to page 4, FIGS. 1 to 3)

  In the air cleaner described in Patent Document 1, the upstream cyclone device swirls air around the vertical axis, and the downstream dust collecting means is configured so that the dust collecting surface is horizontal. Located below. Since the cyclone device overlaps the dust collecting means, the area of the dust collecting means depends on the planar projection area of the cyclone device and cannot be made very large. Nevertheless, since the dust collecting means is arranged horizontally, the air purifier requires a considerable depth, which hinders efficient use of the floor. In addition, it is a shape that is difficult to adapt to use on a wall.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and in an air cleaner that collects coarse dust in the air by a cyclone method, the area of the filter unit that collects fine dust from the air after coarse dust collection is reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide an air purifier that can be sufficiently secured and can be formed in a relatively thin shape, and has a structure that does not cause a sense of incongruity even when used in a wall-mounted manner.

  (1) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a blower that circulates room air, a filter unit that is arranged in a circulating airflow of the room air, and traps dust in the air on a vertical dust trapping surface; In the air purifier having a front panel covering the front surface of the filter unit, air is swirled in the vertical plane by introducing room air from the suction port in the tangential direction of the inner peripheral surface to the back surface of the front panel. A swirl chamber that allows the airflow to flow out to the front side of the filter unit from the air intake duct at the center, and is arranged adjacent to the swirl chamber in the axial direction of the airflow swirl, via an inner peripheral surface portion of the swirl chamber and a slit It is characterized by the formation of a coarse dust collection chamber.

  According to this configuration, the indoor air is first swirled in the swirl chamber, the coarse dust is separated from the air by centrifugal force and collected in the coarse dust accumulation chamber adjacent to the swirl chamber, and then the air free of coarse dust is filtered. Can be supplied to the unit. As a result, it is possible to prevent coarse dust from accumulating on the filter unit and generating bad odors, or reducing dust collecting ability due to an increase in ventilation resistance. The air swirls in the vertical plane, and the filter unit captures dust on the vertical dust trapping surface, so even if the area of the filter unit is sufficient, it can be configured to be thin overall. Yes, the floor can be used widely and efficiently. In addition, since coarse dust is collected behind the front panel normally provided in the air cleaner, there is no sense of incongruity in design and the atmosphere of the room is not impaired even when used in a wall-mounted state.

  (2) Moreover, this invention is an air cleaner of the said structure, The inner peripheral surface of the said turning chamber spreads in a taper shape toward the said slit, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to this configuration, the coarse dust is naturally guided in the direction of the slit by centrifugal force and enters the coarse dust accumulation chamber from the slit, and the coarse dust collection efficiency can be increased.

  (3) Further, the present invention is characterized in that, in the air cleaner having the above-described configuration, a damper whose opening degree increases in proportion to the suction air volume is provided in the suction port.

  According to this configuration, since the opening degree of the damper is reduced as the suction air amount is small, the air speed of the sucked air flow is constant regardless of the amount of the suction air amount. Thereby, the wind speed required for centrifuging coarse dust can always be ensured, and coarse dust can be separated stably.

  (4) Further, the present invention is characterized in that in the air cleaner having the above-described configuration, a plurality of the suction ports are provided at an angular interval.

  According to this configuration, a large amount of room air is sucked from the plurality of suction ports, and the room air can be purified efficiently.

  (5) Moreover, the present invention is characterized in that, in the air cleaner having the above-described configuration, a detachable dust box is disposed at a lower portion of the dust accumulation chamber.

  According to this configuration, by removing the dust box, the accumulated coarse dust can be easily discarded without soiling the hands.

  According to the present invention, an air cleaner capable of efficiently using a wide floor with a thin overall structure while sufficiently securing the area of the filter unit by devising the arrangement of the swirl chamber and the filter unit. Can be provided. In addition, since coarse dust is collected behind the front panel normally provided in the air cleaner, there is no sense of incongruity in design and the atmosphere of the room is not impaired even when used in a wall-mounted state.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a front view of the air cleaner, FIG. 2 is a top view of the air cleaner, FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the air cleaner, FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. It is -B sectional drawing.

  The outer shell portion of the air purifier 1 is mainly composed of a main body 10 in which a flat box is vertically set up and a front panel 11 detachably attached to the front surface of the main body 10. A filter unit housing recess 12 is formed on the front side of the main body 10 (see FIG. 3), and a filter unit 20 having a structure in which a deodorizing filter 21 and a dust collecting filter 22 are stacked in the front and rear is housed therein. The deodorizing filter 21 adsorbs odor components in the air with activated carbon or the like, and the dust collection filter 22 filters fine dust in the air. The filter unit 20 is held in the filter unit housing recess 12 so that the dust capturing surface is vertical. The front panel 11 closes the front opening of the filter unit housing recess 12 to form a filter unit front space 13.

  A blower 30 that sucks air through the filter unit 20 is installed behind the filter unit housing recess 12. The blower 30 includes a fan casing 31 formed inside the main body 10, a sirocco fan 32 disposed inside the fan casing 31, and an electric motor 33 that rotates the sirocco fan 32. An air outlet 34 of the fan casing 31 opens on the upper surface of the main body 10. A lattice-shaped grille 35 (see FIG. 2) is provided at the air outlet 34.

  A swirl chamber 40 and a coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 are formed on the back surface of the front panel 11. The swirl chamber 40 has the structure shown in FIG. 4, and the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 has the structure shown in FIG.

  The swirl chamber 40 is formed immediately behind the front panel 11, and the front shape is circular. The swirl chamber 40 is for swirling air in a vertical plane, and two suction ports 41 for introducing room air are provided in the upper and lower portions in the tangential direction of the inner peripheral surface 42 in the outer peripheral portion. . The suction port 41 is provided with a damper 43 that rotates with one end as a fulcrum. The damper 43 is normally attracted to the closed position by the tension coil spring 44, but the opening degree increases in proportion to the increase in the intake air volume.

  An exhaust cylinder 45 is disposed at the center of the swirl chamber 40. The exhaust cylinder 45 has a net-like filter 46 stretched on a cylindrical frame, and communicates with the filter unit front space 13 through a ventilation duct 51 at the center of the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50.

  An inner peripheral surface 42 of the swirl chamber 40 communicates with the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 through an annular slit 47. The inner peripheral surface 42 extends in a tapered shape toward the slit 47 as seen in FIG.

  The coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 is formed between the swirl chamber 40 and the filter unit front space 13. The coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 has an arc shape following the slit 47 in the upper half, but the lower half is square and opens downward. The lower opening of the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 is closed by a drawer-like dust box 52. The dust box 52 can be pulled out in the side surface direction (right side) of the air cleaner 1 by pulling it with the knob 53.

  The operation of the air cleaner 1 is as follows. When the blower 30 is driven, a negative pressure is generated inside the swirl chamber 40, and room air is sucked from the suction port 41. The airflow of the indoor air pushes open the damper 43 and enters the swirl chamber 40, and then swirls at a high speed in the vertical plane along the inner peripheral surface 42 of the swirl chamber 40. The coarse dust P contained in the room air is separated from the air by the centrifugal force at that time, and enters the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 through the slit 47. As described above, since the inner peripheral surface 42 is tapered toward the slit 47, the coarse dust P is naturally guided in the direction of the slit 47 by centrifugal force, and smoothly passes from the slit 47 to the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50. to go into.

  The coarse dust P that has entered the coarse dust accumulation chamber 50 falls due to gravity and is received by the dust box 52. Thereby, the coarse dust P in the airflow can be collected in the dust box 52 without being adsorbed by the filter unit 20.

  The airflow swirling in the swirl chamber 40 gradually moves toward the center and is sucked into the exhaust pipe 45. At this time, even if the coarse dust P remains in the airflow, it is captured by the net filter 46. The airflow sucked into the exhaust cylinder 45 enters the filter unit front space 13 through the ventilation duct 51, passes through the filter unit 20, and is sucked into the blower 30. In the process, odorous components in the air are adsorbed by the deodorizing filter 21 and fine dust is collected by the dust collecting filter 22. The air cleaned by the filter unit 20 is blown out from the outlet 34. As a result, the airflow is circulated into the room, being drawn in horizontally from the inlet 41 and blown upward from the outlet 34.

  When the operation of the air cleaner 1 is continued, the coarse dust P gradually accumulates in the dust box 52. When the amount of accumulated coarse dust increases, the operation of the air cleaner 1 is stopped, the dust box 52 is taken out, and the coarse dust P inside is discarded. The emptied dust box 52 is set in the air cleaner 1 and the operation is resumed. Note that at least a part of the dust box 52 is preferably made of a transparent material so that the amount of coarse dust accumulated can be seen at a glance, so that the inside can be seen through.

  The opening degree of the damper 43 of the suction port 41 increases in proportion to the suction air volume. For this reason, since the opening degree of the damper 43 becomes small so much if there is little suction | inhalation air volume, the wind speed itself of the inhaled airflow is made constant irrespective of the amount of suction air volume. Thereby, the wind speed required for centrifuging coarse dust P is always ensured, and coarse dust P can be separated stably.

    Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

    The present invention is widely applicable to air cleaners, air conditioners, electric ceramic fan heaters, petroleum fan heaters and the like that purify indoor air.

Front view of air purifier Top view of air purifier Horizontal section of the air purifier AA sectional view of FIG. BB sectional view of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air cleaner 10 Main-body part 11 Front panel 20 Filter unit 30 Blower 40 Swivel chamber 41 Suction port 42 Inner peripheral surface 43 Damper 47 Slit 50 Coarse dust accumulation chamber 51 Ventilation duct 52 Dust box

Claims (5)

Air provided with a blower that circulates indoor air, a filter unit that is disposed in a circulating airflow of the indoor air, and that traps dust in the air with a vertical dust trapping surface, and a front panel that covers the front surface of the filter unit In the purifier,
On the back surface of the front panel, indoor air is introduced from the suction port in the tangential direction of the inner peripheral surface to swirl the airflow in the vertical plane, and the airflow flows out from the intake duct at the center to the front side of the filter unit. And a coarse dust accumulation chamber that is disposed adjacent to the swirl chamber in the axial direction of the airflow swirl and communicates with the inner peripheral surface of the swirl chamber via a slit. Machine.   The air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein an inner peripheral surface of the swirl chamber extends in a tapered shape toward the slit.   The air cleaner according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a damper whose opening increases in proportion to the amount of suction air is provided in the suction port.   The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a plurality of the suction ports are provided at an angular interval.   The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a detachable dust box is disposed at a lower portion of the coarse dust accumulation chamber.

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