JP2007222567A - Air sterilizer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an air sterilizer capable of, for example, suppressing virus floating in a room and effectively suppressing the infection with the virus by detecting environmental information of the room of the installed room and executing a control based on the detection results. <P>SOLUTION: This air sterilizer which has an electrolytic cell 31 generating electrolytic water containing hypochlorous acid by water electrolysis, a gas-liquid contact member 5 where the generated electrolytic water is dropped, and an air fan 7 bowing indoor air to the gas-liquid contact member 5, is further provided with a microphone detecting sound information corresponding to sneeze or the like in the room, and a control part 100 controlling the operation of the electrolytic cell 31 or the air fan 7 according to the number of sneezes detected by the microphone 105. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an air sterilization apparatus capable of removing airborne microorganisms (hereinafter simply referred to as “virus etc.”) such as bacteria, viruses and fungi.

In general, for the purpose of removing viruses and the like, a sterilization apparatus has been proposed that infuses electrolyzed water mist in the air, directly contacts the electrolyzed water mist with viruses and the like, and inactivates viruses and the like (for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-181358 A

  However, the conventional sterilization apparatus is effective in a use environment where fine particulate electrolyzed water mist easily reaches, that is, in a use environment where electrolyzed water mist is difficult to reach while being effective in a relatively small space, ie, large There is a problem that it is difficult to exert its effect in a space such as a kindergarten, elementary, middle, and high school, a nursing care insurance facility, a hospital, and the like.

  In order to eliminate this, a gas-liquid contact member having water retention is provided in the casing, and electrolyzed water obtained by electrolyzing tap water is dropped on the gas-liquid contact member, while a blower fan such as a sirocco fan is used. An applicant has proposed an air sterilization apparatus that blows room air to a gas-liquid contact member and renders viruses and allergens contained in large space air harmless.

  In this air sterilization apparatus, the types and number of viruses and allergic substances floating in the room vary depending on the indoor environment in which the air sterilization apparatus is installed. For this reason, it is desirable to control the air sterilizer according to the indoor environment.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and by detecting environmental information in the installed room and performing control based on the detection result, for example, viruses or the like floating in the room are detected. An object of the present invention is to provide an air sterilization apparatus that can suppress and effectively suppress infection such as the virus.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides an electrolyzed water generating means for electrolyzing water to generate electrolyzed water containing active oxygen species, a gas-liquid contact member to which the generated electrolyzed water is dropped, An air sterilizing apparatus comprising a blower fan for blowing indoor air to the gas-liquid contact member, the detecting means for detecting indoor environmental information, and the electrolyzed water generating means based on the detection result of the detecting means Alternatively, a control means for controlling the operation of the blower fan is provided.

  In this case, the detection means is sneezing detection means for detecting voice information corresponding to sneezing or coughing in the room as the environmental information, and the control means is configured to detect the sneezing or coughing according to the number of times of sneezing or coughing. It is good also as a structure which controls operation | movement of an electrolyzed water production | generation means or the said ventilation fan.

  Further, the control means controls the electrolyzed water generating means so as to increase the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water when the cumulative number of sneezing or coughing per predetermined time is not less than a predetermined number. It is also good. Moreover, the said control means is good also as a structure which makes the rotation speed of the said ventilation fan high, when the density | concentration of the active oxygen species in the said electrolyzed water is made high.

  Further, the detection means is a number detection means for detecting the number of persons in the room as the environmental information, and the control means controls the operation of the electrolyzed water generation means or the blower fan according to the detected number of persons. It is good also as composition to do.

  Furthermore, the control means may be configured to control the electrolyzed water generating means so as to increase the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water when the number of persons is a predetermined number or more. Moreover, the said control means is good also as a structure which makes the rotation speed of the said ventilation fan high, when the density | concentration of the active oxygen species in the said electrolyzed water is made high.

  Further, the electrolyzed water generating means includes an electrode for performing electrolysis, and the control means is configured to increase the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water by increasing a current value flowing through the electrode. Also good.

  According to the present invention, by detecting environmental information in the room and controlling the operation of the electrolyzed water generating means or the blower fan based on the detection result, the virus floating in the room is suppressed, and the virus It can effectively control infection.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In FIG. 1, the code | symbol 1 shows a floor-standing type air sanitizer. This floor-mounted air sterilization apparatus 1 includes a box-shaped housing 2, which includes a leg piece 2A, a front panel 2B, and a top panel 2C, on both sides of the top panel 2C. The operation lid 2D and the opening / closing lid 2E are arranged to be freely opened and closed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, two partition plates 51 and 52 extending in the vertical direction are provided inside the housing 2, and the interior of the housing 2 is divided into three parts by the partition plates 51 and 52. It is divided into chambers (sterilization chamber 60, electrical component chamber 61, water supply chamber 62). A horizontally long suction port 3 is formed in the lower part of the sterilization chamber 60 formed in the center of the housing 2, and a prefilter 3 </ b> A is disposed above the suction port 3. Above the prefilter 3 </ b> A, the blower fan 7 is supported by the partition plates 51 and 52 via the support plate 8. Above the support plate 8, the gas-liquid contact member 5 with high water retention is disposed obliquely so as to drop from the back side to the front side of the housing 2 as shown in FIG. 3. Between the gas-liquid contact member 5 and the blower fan 7, a water tray 9 for receiving the electrolyzed water that has passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 is disposed. 4 is formed.

  Further, in the water supply chamber 62 formed on the right side of the housing 2, as shown in FIG. 2, the water supply tank support tray 10 for storing the electrolyzed water received by the water tray 9 and the water supply tank support tray 10 for storage. A circulating pump 13 that pumps out the electrolyzed water, and an electrolysis tank (electrolyzed water generating means) 31 that electrolyzes the water pumped out by the circulating pump 13 to generate electrolyzed water are accommodated. On the other hand, in the electrical equipment chamber 61 formed on the left side of the housing 2, a control board (not shown) constituting the control unit 100 that controls the entire air sterilization apparatus 1 including the electrolytic bath 31 and the blower fan 7 is provided. Is housed.

As shown in FIG. 4, the gas-liquid contact member 5 includes an element part E through which air flows and a frame part F that supports the element part E. The element portion E is configured by laminating a corrugated plate member 5A and a flat plate member 5B, and a plurality of substantially triangular openings 5F are provided between the corrugated member 5A and the flat plate member 5B. It is formed, has a structure in which a gas contact area is widely secured, electrolytic water can be dripped, and clogging is difficult.
More specifically, the frame portion F has a pair of left and right frame members 5D constituting both end frames of the gas-liquid contact member 5 and an upper portion of one of the left and right frame members 5D and the other frame member 5D has a leading end. An electrolyzed water supply pipe 17 to be fixed, and a cover 5G that is disposed between the upper ends of the pair of left and right frame members 5D so as to cover the electrolyzed water supply pipe 17 and constitute the upper frame of the gas-liquid contact member 5 The cover 5 </ b> G supports the first diversion sheet 5 </ b> C disposed below the electrolyzed water supply pipe 17. The element portion E is disposed between the pair of left and right frame members 5D. On the upper surface of the element portion E, a plurality of second flow dividing sheets 5E are disposed.
The corrugated plate member 5A, the flat plate member 5B, the first flow-dividing sheet 5C and the second flow-dividing sheet 5E are fiber materials having liquid permeability and less deteriorated by electrolyzed water, such as polyolefin resin (polyethylene). Resin, polypropylene resin, etc.), PET (polyethylene terephthalate) resin, vinyl chloride resin, fluororesin (PTFE, PFA, ETFE, etc.) or ceramic materials are used. In this configuration, PET resin is used. ing.

The electrolyzed water supply pipe 17 is supplied with the electrolyzed water generated in the electrolyzer 31, and the electrolyzed water has a plurality of water spray holes (see FIG. 5) formed at intervals in the axial direction of the electrolyzed water supply pipe 17. (Not shown) is dripped onto the first diversion sheet 5C, diffused over the entire first diversion sheet 5C, dropped onto the second diversion sheet 5E, diffused over the entire second diversion sheet 5E, and penetrates the entire upper portion of the element portion E. Then, it penetrates downward along the inclination of the gas-liquid contact member 5. That is, the electrolyzed water can be uniformly permeated to every corner in the longitudinal direction of the gas-liquid contact member 5 by the flow dividing sheets 5C and 5E.
Furthermore, the total watering amount corresponding to the hole diameter from a large number of watering holes is set to be smaller than the discharge amount of the circulation pump 13. For this reason, the electrolyzed water pressure in the electrolyzed water supply pipe 17 is increased, and electrolyzed water is supplied all the way to the terminal sprinkling holes. Can penetrate evenly.

  The inclination angle θ of the gas-liquid contact member 5 is desirably 30 ° or more. In the case of the inclination angle θ smaller than that, the dropped electrolyzed water does not flow along the inclination of the gas-liquid contact member 5 but falls downward. Further, when the inclination angle θ approaches 90 °, the air blowing path passing through the gas-liquid contact member 5 becomes nearly horizontal, and it is difficult to blow upward by that much. When this blowing direction is brought close to the horizontal, the blown air cannot be blown far away, and the device is not suitable for sterilizing a large space. The inclination angle θ is preferably 30 ° <θ <80 °, more preferably 55 ° <θ <75 °, and is set to about 57 ° in this configuration.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the water supply tank support tray 10 disposed in the water supply chamber 62 is provided at a position one step lower than the water receiving tray 9 to store water (electrolyzed water) flowing from the water receiving tray 9 and to supply water. A supporting portion 10A that supports the tank 11 is integrally formed, and when the water stored in the water supply tank support tray 10 is small, the water in the water supply tank 11 is automatically supplied. A constant amount of water is always stored. Here, tap water is stored in the water supply tank 11, and the tap water is supplied to the water supply tank support tray 10.

The electrolysis tank 31 functions as electrolyzed water generating means for generating electrolyzed water, is connected to a pipe 25 extending upward from the discharge port of the circulation pump 13, and is disposed at an upper position than the circulation pump 13. As shown in FIG. 5, the electrolytic cell 31 includes a plurality of electrodes 32 and 33, and tap water supplied to the electrolytic cell 31 when the electrodes 32 and 33 are energized under the control of the control unit 100. Is electrolyzed to produce active oxygen species. And the electrolyzed water containing this active oxygen seed | species is supplied to the electrolyzed water supply pipe | tube 17 of the gas-liquid contact member 5 through the piping 26 shown in FIG. Note that the piping 26 may also be used by connecting the electrolytic water supply pipe 17 directly to the electrolytic bath 31.
Here, active oxygen species are molecules having higher oxidative activity than normal oxygen and related substances, such as superoxide anion, singlet oxygen, hydroxyl radical, or hydrogen peroxide, in a narrow sense. The active oxygen includes so-called broad active oxygen such as ozone and hypohalous acid (hypochlorous acid). As shown in FIG. 2, the electrolytic cell 31 is arranged close to the gas-liquid contact member 5, and is configured so that the electrolyzed water in the electrolytic cell 31 can be immediately supplied to the gas-liquid contact member 5. .

The electrodes 32 and 33 are, for example, electrode plates in which the base is made of Ti (titanium) and the coating layer is made of Ir (iridium) or Pt (platinum). The current value supplied to the electrodes 32 and 33 is the current density. It is set to be several mA (milliampere) / cm ² (square centimeter) to several tens of mA / cm ² to generate a predetermined free residual chlorine concentration (for example, 1 mg (milligram) / l (liter)).

More specifically, when the tap water is energized by the electrodes 32 and 33, the cathode electrode
4H ⁺ + 4e ⁻ + (4OH ⁻ ) → 2H ₂ + (4OH ⁻ )
And the anode electrode
2H ₂ O → 4H ⁺ + O ₂ + 4e ⁻
As soon as the reaction of
Chlorine ions contained in water (pre-added to tap water)
2Cl ⁻ → Cl ₂ + 2e ⁻
In addition, this Cl ₂ reacts with water,
Cl ₂ + H ₂ O → HClO + HCl
It becomes.

  In this configuration, when the electrodes 32 and 33 are energized, HClO (hypochlorous acid) having a high sterilizing power is generated, and air is passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 supplied with the hypochlorous acid. The gas-liquid contact member 5 can prevent germs from breeding, and can inactivate viruses floating in the air passing through the gas-liquid contact member 5. Further, when the odor passes through the gas-liquid contact member 5, it reacts with hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water, and is ionized and dissolved to be removed from the air and deodorized.

As shown in FIG. 6, the control unit 100 includes a microcomputer 100 </ b> A and a memory 100 </ b> B, and the microcomputer 100 </ b> A executes each control program stored in the memory 100 </ b> B to centrally control each unit of the air sterilization apparatus 1. .
The control unit 100 includes an operation panel 101, a notification panel 102, an electrolytic cell float switch (hereinafter referred to as electrolytic cell FS) 103, a water tray float switch (hereinafter referred to as water tray FS) 104, and a microphone (hereinafter referred to as microphone). 105) is connected.
The operation panel 101 is provided at a position that is exposed when the operation lid 2D is opened. In this configuration, a remote control unit including various operation elements such as an operation start button and a reset button and a display panel is applied. In addition to notifying the control unit 100 of instructions, various information can be displayed. The notification panel 102 is provided on the front panel 2A, and includes an operation lamp 102A that indicates whether or not the vehicle is in operation, a water supply lamp 102B that notifies a water supply request of the water supply tank 11, and the like, as shown in FIG.
The electrolytic cell FS103 is a water level sensor that detects whether or not the electrolytic cell 31 has water above a predetermined water level, and the water tray FS104 is a water level that detects whether or not the support plate 10 has water above the predetermined water level. The control unit 100 controls the lighting of the water supply lamp 102B of the notification panel 102 based on the detection results of the electrolytic cell FS103 and the water tray FS104.

The microphone 105 functions as sneezing detection means for detecting sound information corresponding to indoor sneezing or coughing (hereinafter referred to as sneezing) as environmental information, and is emitted in the room where the air sterilization apparatus 1 is installed. The voice information is received, the voice information is converted into a voice signal and output to the microcomputer 100A. In this configuration, the microphone 105 is provided at the end of the top panel 2C of the housing 2 and in the vicinity of the operation lid 2D, as shown in FIG. In addition, the voice information includes a room conversation and the like in addition to a room sneeze or cough.
The microcomputer 100A performs a process of determining whether or not the input audio signal corresponds to sneezing or the like. That is, the memory 100B stores a speech waveform of speech information corresponding to sneezing or the like as a database, and the microcomputer 100A compares the waveform of the input speech signal with the speech waveform to obtain the speech signal. It is discriminated whether it is a sneeze or a conversation. In this case, the microcomputer 100A functions as a voice recognition unit that performs voice recognition processing.

  With the above configuration, when the operation panel 101 is operated and an operation is instructed, the control unit 100 turns on the operation lamp 102A, drives the circulation pump 13, and supplies the tap water stored in the support tray 10 to the electrolytic cell. 31, in the electrolytic bath 31, tap water is electrolyzed to generate electrolyzed water containing active oxygen species, which is dropped onto the gas-liquid contact member 5 via the pipe 26 and the electrolyzed water supply pipe 17, and gradually. To penetrate. And the electrolyzed water dripped from the gas-liquid contact member 5 is received by the water receiving tray 9, flows into the supporting tray 10 from the water receiving tray 9, and is stored there. Thus, in this configuration, the water is a circulation type, and when the amount of water is reduced by evaporation or the like, an appropriate amount of tap water in the water supply tank 11 is supplied to the support tray 10. This water supply tank 11 can be replenished with tap water by opening and closing the opening / closing lid 2E (FIG. 1).

  The air-liquid contact member 5 into which the electrolytic water has permeated is supplied with indoor air as indicated by an arrow X through the blower fan 7. The indoor air comes into contact with the active oxygen species soaked in the gas-liquid contact member 5 or passes through the vicinity thereof and is blown out into the room again. This reactive oxygen species has the function of suppressing allergens such as viruses, pollen, mite fungus, and carcasses. For example, when influenza virus floats in the air, the surface protein (spike) of the virus is essential for infection. ) Is destroyed, disappeared (removed) and destroyed, the influenza virus and the receptor (receptor) necessary to infect the virus are not bound, thereby preventing the infection. As a result of the verification test, it was found that 99% or more of the virus can be removed when the air in which the influenza virus is suspended is passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 having this configuration. The above is the operation in the normal operation mode.

By the way, it is known that, for example, an influenza virus infects others by droplets such as sneezing. Here, if sneezing or the like frequently occurs in the room, it is considered that a person staying in the room is likely to be infected with influenza virus. For this reason, in this configuration, as described above, the microphone 105 for detecting sneezing or the like is provided, and hypochlorous acid contained in the electrolytic water according to the number of times of sneezing or the like detected by the microphone 105. The acid concentration can be changed.
Specifically, when the number of detected sneezes or the like is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, the current value flowing between the electrodes 32 and 33 is made higher than the current value in the normal operation mode, thereby being generated. The concentration of chloric acid is increased (hereinafter referred to as high output operation mode). In this configuration, by increasing the voltage value applied to the electrodes 32 and 33, the value of the current flowing between the electrodes 32 and 33 is changed to be high.
For example, when the air sanitizer 1 is installed in a school classroom, when the number of sneezes in the classroom is a predetermined number or more, the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water is increased. Since the air that has passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 to which high-concentration electrolyzed water has been dropped is released into the room, viruses contained in sneezing and the like can be suppressed, and for example, influenza infection can be effectively suppressed. can do.

Next, the operation in the high output operation mode will be described.
When the operation of the air sterilizer 1 is started, the control unit 100 starts measuring a predetermined basic detection time from an internal counter (not shown) (step S11). This basic detection time is a time for determining the detection frequency of sneezing or the like, and is set to, for example, 5 minutes in this embodiment.
Subsequently, when a sneeze or the like is generated in the room, the control unit 100 detects the sneeze and accumulates the number of times (step S12). Specifically, the microcomputer 100A detects sneezing or the like by comparing the waveform of the audio signal input via the microphone 105 with the audio waveform corresponding to the sneezing or the like stored in the memory 100B. Then, the microcomputer 100A accumulates the number of times of sneezing or the like in the detection basic time.

Subsequently, the control unit 100 determines whether or not the accumulated number of sneezes is a predetermined number or more (step S13). In this determination, when the accumulated number of sneezes is smaller than the predetermined number, the frequency of detection of sneezes or the like is low, so the control unit 100 does not need to increase the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water. Determination is made, the number of integrations is reset (step S14), and the process proceeds to step S11.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the accumulated number of sneezes is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, the control unit 100 determines that the patient is easily infected by sneezing or the like, and the process proceeds to step S15.
Then, the control part 100 performs the high output driving | operation of the electrolytic cell 31 (step S15). Specifically, by changing the current value supplied to the electrodes 32 and 33 of the electrolytic cell 31 higher, the concentration is higher than the free residual chlorine (hypochlorous acid) concentration in the normal operation mode (for example, 3 mg (milligram)). / L (liter)) of free residual chlorine. According to this, since electrolyzed water containing high-concentration hypochlorous acid is dropped onto the gas-liquid contact member 5, the indoor air is effectively sterilized when passing through the gas-liquid contact member 5. The
Next, the control part 100 changes the rotation speed of the ventilation fan 7 higher than the rotation speed of normal operation mode (step S16). According to this, since a large amount of air is blown to the gas-liquid contact member 5 to which electrolyzed water containing high-concentration hypochlorous acid is dropped, the amount of circulation of indoor air increases, so that the gas-liquid contact The amount of air passing through the member 5 increases, and the influenza virus floating in the room air can be quickly suppressed, and the influenza infection can be effectively suppressed.
Subsequently, the control unit 100 continuously executes the high output operation for a predetermined operation time (for example, 30 minutes) (step S17), and when the operation time has elapsed, the control unit 100 causes the electrodes 32 and 33 described above to pass. The current value supplied to the fan and the rotation speed of the blower fan 7 are returned to the values in the normal operation mode, respectively, the number of integrations is reset (step S18), the process proceeds to step S11, and steps S11 to S11 are performed again. The process of S18 is executed.

  According to the present embodiment, the operation of the electrolytic cell 31 or the blower fan 7 is controlled in accordance with the microphone 105 that detects voice information corresponding to sneezing in the room and the number of sneezing detected by the microphone 105. Since the control unit 100 executes control according to the indoor environment, for example, influenza virus contained in sneezing or the like can be suppressed, and influenza infection is effectively suppressed. can do.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, when the cumulative number of sneezes or coughs per predetermined time is equal to or greater than the predetermined number, the electrode 32 of the electrolytic layer 31 so as to increase the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water, Since the current value supplied to 33 is increased, even when there is a high risk of infection due to sneezing or the like, influenza virus or the like can be suppressed, and influenza infection can be effectively suppressed.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, when the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water is increased, the rotational speed of the blower fan 7 is increased, so that the gas-liquid contact member 5 supplied with high concentration electrolytic water has a large amount. The amount of indoor air circulation can be increased by blowing the air. For this reason, the influenza virus which floats in indoor air can be suppressed rapidly, and influenza infection can be suppressed effectively.

  In this embodiment, by increasing the voltage value applied between the electrodes 32 and 33, the current value supplied between the electrodes 32 and 33 is increased, and hypochlorous acid generated at the electrodes 32 and 33 is generated. Although the structure which raises the density | concentration of an acid is demonstrated, it is not restricted to this, By reducing the amount of circulating water of the circulation pump 13, the electrolysis time is made relatively long, and the said hypochlorous acid of It is good also as a structure which makes a density | concentration high.

Next, another embodiment will be described.
As mentioned above, the influenza virus is infected by droplets, so when a large number of people stay in the room, it is considered that the virus is likely to be infected by the influenza virus not only by sneezing but also by droplets contained in conversations. . For this reason, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 150 includes a human sensor (number detection means) 110 that detects the number of people in the room as environmental information, and the above-described high level is determined according to the detected number of people. The configuration is different from the above embodiment in that the output operation mode is executed. Other configurations are substantially the same as those in the above-described embodiment, and thus the same reference numerals are given and description thereof is omitted.
The human sensor 110 detects the number of people staying in the room from thermal movement caused by human movement such as movement of a human and outputs the detected number to the microcomputer 150A. As shown in FIG. 9, the human sensor 110 is disposed on the notification panel 102 provided on the front panel 2 </ b> A of the housing 2 together with the operation lamp 102 </ b> A and the water supply lamp 102 </ b> B. In the present embodiment, the detection range of the human sensor 110 covers substantially the whole area in the room in the horizontal direction, and generally the range in which a person moves in the room in the vertical direction (for example, up to a height of about 150 cm from the floor surface). Range).
For example, when the air sanitizer 1 is installed in a waiting room of a hospital, when the number of people staying in the waiting room is more than a predetermined number, the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water is increased to increase the concentration. Since the air that has passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 to which the electrolyzed water has been dropped is released into the room, it is possible to suppress viruses and the like contained in droplets emitted by a person staying in the room during conversation, sneezing, etc. Can be effectively suppressed.

Next, the operation of this another embodiment will be described.
When the operation of the air sterilization apparatus 1 is started, the control unit 150 operates the human sensor 110 at predetermined intervals (for example, 5 minutes) to detect the number of people staying in the room (step S21). Subsequently, the control unit 150 determines whether or not the detected number of persons is greater than or equal to a predetermined reference number (step S22). The predetermined reference number of people is appropriately changed depending on the place where the air sanitizer 1 is installed (hospital waiting room, school classroom, etc.) and its size. For example, in a waiting room of a hospital of approximately 100 m ² The predetermined reference number is set to 20 people.

In this determination, when the detected number of persons is less than the predetermined reference number, the control unit 150 determines that it is not necessary to increase the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water because there is less risk of infection. The detected number of people is reset (step S23), and the process proceeds to step S21.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S22 that the detected number of persons is equal to or greater than the predetermined reference number, the control unit 150 determines that the patient is easily infected by sneezing or the like, and the process proceeds to step S24.
Then, the control part 150 performs the high output driving | operation of the electrolytic cell 31 (step S24). Specifically, by changing the current value supplied to the electrodes 32 and 33 of the electrolytic cell 31 higher, the concentration is higher than the free residual chlorine (hypochlorous acid) concentration in the normal operation mode (for example, 3 mg (milligram)). / L (liter)) of free residual chlorine. According to this, since electrolyzed water containing high-concentration hypochlorous acid is dropped onto the gas-liquid contact member 5, the indoor air is effectively sterilized when passing through the gas-liquid contact member 5. The
Next, the control part 150 changes the rotation speed of the ventilation fan 7 higher than the rotation speed of normal operation mode (step S25). According to this, since a large amount of air is blown to the gas-liquid contact member 5 to which electrolyzed water containing high-concentration hypochlorous acid is dropped, the amount of circulation of the indoor air increases, so that the gas-liquid contact The amount of air passing through the member 5 increases, and the influenza virus floating in the room air can be quickly suppressed, and influenza infection can be effectively suppressed.
Subsequently, the control unit 150 continuously executes the high output operation for a predetermined operation time (for example, 30 minutes) (step S26), and when the operation time has elapsed, the control unit 150 causes the electrodes 32 and 33 described above to pass. The current value supplied to the fan and the rotation speed of the blower fan 7 are returned to the values in the normal operation mode, the detected number of people is reset (step S27), the process proceeds to step S21, and steps S21 to S21 are performed again. The process of step S27 is executed.

  According to this another embodiment, the human sensor 110 that detects the number of people staying in the room and the control for controlling the operation of the electrolytic cell 31 or the blower fan 7 according to the number of persons detected by the human sensor 110. Since the control unit 150 executes control according to the indoor environment, for example, it is possible to suppress influenza virus contained in splashes generated by a person staying indoors in conversation or sneezing. Can effectively suppress influenza infection.

  Further, according to another embodiment, when the detected number of persons is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference number, the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolytic water is supplied to the electrodes 32 and 33 of the electrolytic layer 31 so as to increase. In order to increase the current value, influenza virus can be suppressed even when there is a high risk of infection due to conversation or sneezing, and influenza infection can be effectively suppressed.

  According to another embodiment, when the concentration of hypochlorous acid in the electrolyzed water is increased, the rotational speed of the blower fan 7 is increased, so that the gas-liquid contact member 5 supplied with high-concentration electrolyzed water is used. By blowing a large amount of air, the circulation amount of the indoor air can be increased. For this reason, the influenza virus which floats in indoor air can be suppressed rapidly, and influenza infection can be suppressed effectively.

As mentioned above, although one Embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to this, A various change implementation is possible. For example, the configuration for generating hypochlorous acid as the active oxygen species has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a configuration for generating ozone (O ₃ ) or hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂ ) as the active oxygen species is described. Also good. In this case, when a platinum tantalum electrode is used as an electrode, active oxygen species can be stably generated with high efficiency by electrolysis from water having a small ion species.
At this time, in the anode electrode,
2H ₂ O → 4H ⁺ + O ₂ + 4e ⁻
At the same time as
3H ₂ O → O ₃ + 6H ⁺ + 6e ⁻
2H ₂ O → O ₃ + 4H ⁺ + 4e ⁻
This reaction occurs and ozone (O ₃ ) is generated. In the cathode electrode,
4H ⁺ + 4e ⁻ + (4OH ⁻ ) → 2H ₂ + (4OH ⁻ )
O ₂ ⁻ + e ⁻ + 2H ⁺ → H ₂ O ₂
Thus, O ₂ ⁻ produced by the electrode reaction and H ⁺ in the solution are combined to produce hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂ ).

In this construction, by supplying current to the electrodes, a large ozone sterilizing power (O ₃₎ and hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂₎ is generated, these ozone (O ₃₎ and hydrogen peroxide (H ₂ O ₂₎ Electrolyzed water containing can be made. The concentration of ozone or hydrogen peroxide in the electrolyzed water is adjusted to a concentration that inactivates the target virus and the like, and air is passed through the gas-liquid contact member 5 supplied with the electrolyzed water of this concentration. It is possible to inactivate floating target viruses and the like. Further, when the odor passes through the gas-liquid contact member 5, it reacts with ozone or hydrogen peroxide in the electrolytic water, and is ionized and dissolved to be removed from the air and deodorized.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although it was set as the water supply system by the water tank 11 which can be taken in and out, instead of this water tank 11, it is good also as a water pipe water supply system which connects a water pipe and guides city water directly.

It is a perspective view of the air sterilizer concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of an air sanitizer. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an air sterilizer. It is a figure which shows the structure of a gas-liquid contact member. It is a figure which shows the internal structure of an electrolytic vessel. It is a figure for demonstrating the structure of an air sanitizer. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of this embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the structure of another embodiment. It is a perspective view of the air sterilizer concerning another embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of another embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Air sanitizer 2 Case 5 Gas-liquid contact member 7 Blower fan 31 Electrolyzer (electrolyzed water production | generation means)
32, 33 Electrode 100, 150 Control unit 105 Microphone (sneezing detection means)
110 Human sensor (number detection means)

Claims (8)

Electrolyzed water generating means for electrolyzing water to generate electrolyzed water containing active oxygen species, a gas-liquid contact member to which the generated electrolyzed water is dropped, and indoor air is blown to the gas-liquid contact member An air sterilization apparatus comprising a blower fan,
An air sterilization apparatus comprising: a detection unit that detects indoor environment information; and a control unit that controls an operation of the electrolyzed water generation unit or the blower fan based on a detection result of the detection unit.   The detecting means is a sneezing detecting means for detecting sound information corresponding to sneezing or coughing in the room as the environmental information, and the control means is adapted to generate the electrolyzed water according to the number of detected sneezing or coughing. Or the operation | movement of the said ventilation fan is controlled, The air disinfection apparatus of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The control means controls the electrolyzed water generating means so as to increase the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water when the cumulative number of sneezing or coughing per predetermined time is not less than a predetermined number. The air disinfection device according to claim 2.   The air sterilizer according to claim 3, wherein the control means increases the rotational speed of the blower fan when the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolytic water is increased.   The detection means is a number detection means for detecting the number of people in the room as the environmental information, and the control means controls the operation of the electrolyzed water generation means or the blower fan according to the detected number of persons. The air sterilizer according to claim 1.   6. The air according to claim 5, wherein the control means controls the electrolyzed water generating means to increase the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water when the number of persons is equal to or greater than a predetermined number. Disinfection device.   The air sterilizer according to claim 6, wherein the control means increases the rotational speed of the blower fan when the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolytic water is increased. The electrolyzed water generating means includes an electrode for performing electrolysis, and the control means increases the concentration of active oxygen species in the electrolyzed water by increasing a current value flowing through the electrode. The air disinfection device according to claim 4 or 7.

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