JP2008259933A - Disposer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stop crushing of foreign matter not a crushing object by estimating the kind or size of the foreign matter mixed into garbage in a crushing chamber. <P>SOLUTION: The disposer with a charge port 7a mounted on the drain port of the sink of a kitchen to crush garbage charged to the crushing chamber 7 from the charge port 7a, is provided with a sound detecting means detecting sound generated in the crushing chamber 7 and outputting sound signals based on the detected sound, and a foreign matter detecting means detecting the foreign matter mixed into garbage based on the sound signals from the sound detecting means. By this configuration, the kind or size of the foreign matter mixed into the garbage in the crushing chamber 7 is estimated from a sound frequency and sound pressure level of the sound signals to stop crushing of the foreign matter not a crushing object. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a disposer applicable to a sink such as a kitchen of a general house or a commercial kitchen. Specifically, the type or size of the foreign matter detected by identifying the acoustic frequency and the sound pressure level based on the acoustic signal, comprising acoustic detection means for detecting the sound and foreign matter detection means for detecting the foreign matter from the acoustic signal. Thus, the crushing process for a foreign object that is not the object of crushing can be stopped.

  Currently, disposers are sometimes laid in sinks of sinks such as kitchens in general houses and commercial kitchens. The disposer is mainly attached to the lower surface side of the sink, and crushes garbage such as garbage thrown in from the sink and discharges it together with water.

  Previously, problems such as contamination of sewage by crushed dredges were pointed out, but now local governments permit the installation of disposers that meet certain standards. Furthermore, in a housing complex such as an apartment, a system is also introduced in which a common wastewater treatment tank is provided to purify the water discharged from the disposer and then drain it into sewage. Since these disposers can process garbage immediately, they are highly convenient for users and are expected to reduce the amount of garbage collected for local governments.

  However, many of these disposers are crushed by a crushing blade portion that rotates a basket. Therefore, when a foreign object such as a spoon is accidentally put in, there is a possibility that it jumps out of the thrower inlet of the disposer or deforms the crushing blade part due to contact with the crushing blade part that rotates. There is also a risk of damaging the foreign matter. In order to prevent these, there are cases where a method of detecting a foreign matter by monitoring a load current used for driving the crushing blade portion, a method of detecting a foreign matter by a metal sensor, or the like may be used.

  In relation to this, a disposer as shown in Patent Document 1 is disclosed. According to the disposer shown in Patent Document 1, a connecting pipe of a non-metallic elastic member that connects the disposer and the sink is provided, and the disposer is connected to the mounting pipe of the sink via the connecting pipe, and the outer peripheral surface of the connecting pipe is connected to the disposer. A metal sensor is attached so that foreign metal is detected at the initial stage of passage through the connecting pipe. By doing so, the disposer crushing operation is stopped before the metal foreign object is blown off by the rotary blade plate, and the metal foreign object can be easily removed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-157886 (page 3, FIG. 1)

  However, when foreign matter detection is performed with a load current as in the past, it is determined whether the foreign matter is a hard-to-break rod such as a bone of meat for livestock or a hard foreign matter such as a spoon or fork. There is a problem that it is difficult to do. Furthermore, when a metal sensor is used like the disposer according to Patent Document 1, it is difficult to detect only the foreign matter in the crushing chamber, and there is a possibility that malfunction may occur due to, for example, the disposer body or the magnetic material around the sink. is there. In order to prevent malfunction, it is necessary to set the detection result of the disposer body and the magnetic material around the sink as an initial value in advance. Furthermore, since a metal sensor is used, there is a problem that it is difficult to detect foreign substances such as non-metals such as pottery and wooden tableware.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been created in view of the above-described problems, and provides a disposer that can detect a foreign object that is not to be crushed by estimating the type or size of the foreign substance put into the crushing chamber. Objective.

  The disposer according to the present invention has an input port attached to the drain of the sink of the kitchen, and detects the sound generated in the crushing chamber in the disposer for crushing the straw put into the crushing chamber from the input port, It is characterized by comprising acoustic detection means for outputting an acoustic signal based on the detected sound, and foreign matter detection means for detecting foreign matter mixed in the bag based on the acoustic signal from the acoustic detection means.

  According to the disposer according to the present invention, the sound detection means detects the sound of the crushing chamber and outputs an acoustic signal, and the foreign matter detection means detects the foreign matter based on the acoustic signal. Therefore, the acoustic frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signal can be identified to estimate the type or size of the foreign matter mixed in the crushing chamber.

  The disposer according to the present invention includes sound detection means for detecting sound and outputting sound signals, and foreign object detection means for detecting foreign objects from the sound signals. With this configuration, the acoustic frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signal can be identified to estimate the type or size of the foreign matter mixed in the crush in the crushing chamber. Therefore, the crushing process for hard foreign objects such as metal, ceramics, and wooden tableware can be stopped, and the crushing process for difficult-to-crush slag that is a crushing target can be continued. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the hard foreign matter from jumping out from the inlet.

  In addition, since the foreign matter detection process can be executed only for the wrinkles in the crushing chamber, it is possible to prevent malfunction due to the metal material or magnetic member of the disposer body as in the case of using a metal sensor.

  Next, the disposer according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a top view showing a configuration example (No. 1) of a disposer 1 as a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow B1-B1 in FIG. 1, showing a configuration example (part 2) of the disposer 1.

  The disposer 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a hopper 3, a housing 4, a crushing chamber 7, a sink flange 51, a microphone 41, a microphone storage portion 42, a control device 40 (see FIG. 4), a drive motor 31 (see FIG. 4), and a deceleration unit. Etc., and installed on the lower surface side of the kitchen sink S provided in the kitchen facility.

  In addition to the above, the disposer 1 includes a mounting means 2, a bottom plate 6a, a drain pipe connection port 6b, a drive shaft 6c, an opening / closing lid 8, a crushing unit 10 and the like as shown in FIG. The disposer 1 has a main body outer peripheral portion constituted by a tubular hopper 3.

  The upper end portion of the hopper 3 is attached to the drain of the kitchen sink S via the sink flange 51 and the attachment means 2. A housing 4 is detachably mounted on the inner periphery of the hopper 3 here. The opening opening at the upper end of the hopper 3 constitutes a straw inlet 7 a, and the inside of the hopper 3 and the housing 4 constitutes a crushing chamber 7. The disposer 1 crushes the soot introduced into the crushing chamber 7 from the inlet 7a.

  A crushing unit 10 is mounted inside the housing 4 and functions as a crushing blade portion during crushing processing. The crushing unit 10 is a grinder type here. The crushing unit 10 is detachably inserted from the opening of the housing 4. The crushing unit 10 has the third rotary crushing blade 16 at the lowermost stage, and a fitting portion 37 provided on the lower surface of the hub is fitted to a drive shaft 6c of a speed reduction unit (not shown). The drive shaft 6c and the fitting portion 37 are formed in a square shaft shape or a spline shaft shape. Details of the crushing unit 10 will be described later.

  The lower part of the hopper 3 is a housing (case) for fixing to the kitchen sink S, and a drive motor 31 as a driving means and a speed reduction unit (not shown) are installed therein. The drive motor 31 rotationally drives the rotary crushing blade of the crushing unit 10 via the drive shaft 6c of the reduction unit.

  A drain pipe connection port 6 b is provided at the lower end of the hopper 3. Inside the hopper 3, a bottom plate 6a inclined toward the drain pipe connection port 6b is provided, and the central portion of the bottom plate 6a serves as a bearing portion that receives the drive shaft 6c of the reduction unit.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, an opening / closing lid 8 is detachably attached to the insertion port 7a side of the hopper 3. Here, the open / close lid 8 has an upper lid 8a and an inner lid 8b. When the disposer 1 executes the crushing process, the opening 7a side is closed by the opening / closing lid 8 so that a hand or the like is not inadvertently inserted into the crushing chamber 7 during the garbage processing and is crushed. Garbage does not scatter to the kitchen sink S side.

  Here, the inner lid 8b is formed in a bottomed cylindrical body, and a flange-like flange portion 8b1 bent outward is formed on the upper portion of the inner lid 8b. The flange portion 8b1 is a portion for attachment to the insertion port 7a. A water passage hole 8c is formed in the flange portion 8b1 of the inner lid 8b for draining water from the kitchen sink S side during the crushing process. Here, the upper lid 8a is attached to the inside of the water passage hole 8c. A cylindrical gap 8e is obtained between the middle lid 8b and the upper lid 8a, and functions as a stagnant portion of tap water. Here, tap water from a water supply pipe K1 connected to the side surface of the inner lid 8b is guided to the gap 8e (see FIG. 1). The water supplied to the gap 8e from the water supply pipe K1 is supplied into the crushing chamber 7 through a plurality of through holes 8d opened in the entire bottom surface of the inner lid 8b, and the soot is discharged.

  Here, the drive motor 31 is started in conjunction with the opening / closing lid 8. Therefore, a permanent magnet (not shown) is provided on the opening / closing lid 8, and a magnetic sensor is provided on the hopper 3 side as foreign matter detection means. When the magnetic sensor detects that the insertion port 7a is closed by the opening / closing lid 8, the control device 40 (see FIG. 4) controls the drive of the drive motor 31 and the like. In this way, the disposer 1 is configured. The housing 4 will be described in detail below.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration example of the housing 4. The housing 4 shown in FIG. 3 is an upright cylindrical cylindrical body, and in this example, in the inner peripheral surface, in the example shown in FIG. A pair of fitting portions (groove portions in this example) 4a extending downward from the 7a side is formed. The fitting part 4 a is a part for mounting and fixing the crushing unit 10.

  A pair of fixing means 5 b made of two parallel projecting pieces are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the housing 4. Further, a bulging portion 5a having a predetermined width corresponding to the fixing means 5b is provided on the inner peripheral surface of the hopper 3 shown in FIG. 1, and the housing 4 holds the bulging portion 5a by the fixing means 5b. Is attached to the hopper 3 without rotating.

  When the housing 4 is mounted on the hopper 3, a drainage channel 100 that is an annular gap is formed on the outer periphery of the housing 4 (see FIG. 1). The drainage channel 100 mainly serves as a drainage channel for water from the kitchen sink S side during the crushing process. Accordingly, the drainage channel 100 communicates with the water passage hole 8c in the outer peripheral portion of the opening / closing lid 8 described above. Here, the drainage channel 100 has a width Wa of about 1 to 10 mm. In this example, a microphone 41 is arranged near the upper side of the drainage channel 100, and the foreign substance detection process is executed together with the control device 40. In this example, the foreign matter detection processing is to detect metallic (metallic) foreign matter mixed in the ridges in the crushing chamber 7.

  The microphone 41 constitutes an example of a sound detection unit and detects sound generated in the crushing chamber 7. The microphone 41 is housed in the microphone housing portion 42 and is attached and fixed to the hopper 3 side here. For the microphone 41, for example, a condenser type, ribbon type, or the like is used. Here, the microphone 41 is composed of two microphones 41a and 41b so that the sound in the crushing chamber 7 can be collected without fail.

  In this example, the microphones 41 a and 41 b are attached to the hopper 3 side. When the housing 4 is attached to the hopper 3, the microphones 41 a and 41 b are arranged so that the outer peripheral surface of the housing 4 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the housing 4 as shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. Is done. This is for easily and safely connecting the output terminals from the microphones 41a and 41b to the control device 40. Therefore, the microphones 41a and 41b may be attached to the housing 4 side by devising a method for connecting the output terminals. In that case, you may attach to the internal peripheral surface of the housing 4. FIG.

  The microphones 41a and 41b collect sound at their respective positions and output acoustic signals S3 and S4 that are voltage signals or current signals. The acoustic signals S3 and S4 output from the microphone 41 are input to the control device 40 via a signal line (not shown).

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the control device 40. The control device 40 shown in FIG. 4 includes a foreign matter detection unit 44 as a foreign matter detection unit, a memory 47, a control unit 43 as a control unit, an operation unit 45, and a buzzer 46 as a foreign matter notification unit. The control device 40 is installed, for example, in a predetermined part of the disposer 1 or the kitchen sink S, and controls a series of crushing processing and foreign matter detection processing by the disposer 1. When a metallic foreign object such as a spoon or fork contacts a member in the crushing chamber 7 such as a crushing unit 10 during crushing processing by the disposer 1, the frequency is higher than that during normal crushing operation and the sound pressure is higher. High level crushing sound (sound) is generated. The control device 40 detects metallic foreign matter based on the acoustic frequency and sound pressure level of the crushing sound.

The crushing sound in the crushing chamber 7 is detected by the microphone 41 (microphones 41a and 41b), and sound-voltage conversion or sound-current conversion is performed and output as acoustic signals S3 and S4.
The foreign matter detection unit 44 receives the acoustic signals S3 and S4 from the microphone 41 and detects foreign matter mixed in the cage of the crushing chamber 7. The foreign object detection unit 44 detects a foreign object based on the acoustic frequency of the acoustic signals S3 and S4 and the sound pressure level converted from the voltage or current level. The foreign object detection unit 44 monitors whether or not the acoustic signals S3 and S4 reach, for example, a predetermined acoustic frequency F1 or higher and a predetermined sound pressure level N1 or higher. When detecting the foreign matter, the foreign matter detection unit 44 outputs a pulse signal P1 as the detection signal S5 here.

  Here, the sound pressure level N1 and the acoustic frequency F1 are associated with each other by a predetermined function formula L1 (N1 = f (F1)). The function formula L1 is an approximate formula derived from, for example, correlation data between the sound pressure level N1 and the acoustic frequency F1. A memory 47 is connected to the foreign object detection unit 44 and stores the above-described functional expression L1. The foreign object detection unit 44 reads the functional equation L1 from the memory 47 and detects the foreign object. The foreign matter detection unit 44 outputs a detection signal S5 as a detection result, and the detection signal S5 is input to the control unit 43.

  An operation unit 45, a switch SW1, and a buzzer 46 are further connected to the control unit 43. Here, the operation unit 45 is provided and operated, for example, on the side surface of the kitchen sink S, and outputs a crushing process start command (start signal), for example. Alternatively, the closing state (closing operation) of the opening / closing lid 8 may be detected and a start command for crushing processing may be output.

  The control unit 43 performs the crushing process according to the activation command from the operation unit 45 and the like, and sequentially executes the foreign object detection process in cooperation with the microphone 41 and the foreign object detection unit 44. Here, the control unit 43 outputs a control signal S6 and a notification signal S7 corresponding to the detection signal S5 from the foreign object detection unit 44.

  Here, for example, the control unit 43 stops the crushing process when the pulse signal P1 is generated twice in succession with a constant period T4 in the detection signal S5. The period T4 is set so as to be substantially synchronized with the rotation period of the crushing unit 10. In this way, it is possible to prevent malfunction caused by sound other than noise caused by electromagnetic waves or the like and crushing sound. Note that the cycle T4 may be completely coincident with the rotation cycle of the crushing unit 10, or is delayed by a predetermined time and slightly shifted in phase with respect to the rotation cycle of the crushing unit 10, thereby stabilizing the crushing operation. The period T4 may start at the timing.

  When the pulse signal P1 is input a plurality of times, for example, twice continuously as an example, the control unit 43 inverts the control signal S6 to the Low level here. The control signal S6 is input to the switch SW1. The switch SW1 is connected between the AC power supply 50 and the drive motor 31, and opens and closes the electrical connection between the AC power supply 50 and the drive motor 31. Here, the switch SW1 is turned off (opened) when the control signal S6 is at the low level, and is turned on (conducted) when the control signal S6 is at the high level.

  Further, the control unit 43 inverts the control signal S6 to the Low level and at the same time inverts the notification signal S7 from the Low level to the High level. The notification signal S7 is input to the buzzer 46. In response to the notification signal S7 input from the control unit 43, the buzzer 46 generates a notification sound and notifies that a foreign object has been detected. Here, the buzzer 46 is turned off (stopped) when the notification signal S7 is at the low level, and turned on (notified) when it is at the high level.

  In this case, the buzzer 46 is used to notify the buzzer sound. However, the buzzer sound is not limited to this, and instead of the buzzer sound notification or together with the buzzer sound notification, for example, a light emission notification by a light emitting diode, a character on a liquid crystal screen, Announcement may be made using pictorial diagrams. The control device 40 is configured as described above.

  It should be noted that some of the configurations of the control device 40 may be combined into one configuration, and a plurality of functions may be shared. For example, the foreign object detection unit 44 and the control unit 43 may be provided as independent electric circuits / electronic components, or the foreign object detection unit 44 and the control unit 43 may be provided as an IC integrated into one chip. The configuration 43 ′ may also serve as a foreign object detection unit) and a control unit (control unit).

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a frequency-sound pressure level characteristic example of a shattered sound. The characteristic line L2 shown in FIG. 5 is the sound and characteristic line during the crushing treatment for a standard kite (Source: “Development of Garbage Recycling System Using Disposer”, September 1, 1999, issued by Nippon Building Center). L3 indicates the characteristics of the crushing sound during the crushing process for metallic foreign matters. The characteristic lines L2 and L3 are derived from, for example, frequency-sound pressure level correlation data.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the characteristic line L3 has a higher frequency and a higher sound pressure level than the characteristic line L2. The memory 47 stores, for example, a function equation L1 that is a boundary line represented as a plane curve in FIG. 5, and the foreign object detection unit 44 reads the function equation L1 from the memory 47 and executes detection. The relational expression L1 is arbitrarily set so as to be positioned between the characteristic line L2 and the characteristic line L3.

  When the frequency and sound pressure level of the input acoustic signal S3 or S4 is higher than the boundary line according to the function equation L1, that is, the foreign object detection unit 44, that is, the frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signal S3 or S4 in FIG. The pulse signal P1 described above is output when the intersection with is located in a region E1 indicated by hatching.

  6A to 6C are diagrams illustrating examples of foreign object detection of the disposer 1. In FIG. 6A, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents the detection signal S5 level. In FIG. 6B, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents the control signal S6 level. In FIG. 6C, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents the notification signal S7 level.

  When a crushing process start command is input from the operation unit 45 at time T0 in FIG. 6A, the disposer 1 first starts the crushing process. Since the crushing unit 10 is of a grinder type, a relatively slow forward / reverse rotation is started so as to repeat forward rotation and reverse rotation (reverse rotation) at a constant period T4. Here, the period T4 is substantially the same time as the time from the start time of the normal rotation operation to the start time of the next normal rotation operation.

  When the intersection of the frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signal S3 or S4 from the microphone 41a or 41b reaches the region E1 in FIG. 5 in the first rotation (forward rotation), the detection signal S5 has a pulse signal P1 at time T1. Occurs. Further, when the intersection of the frequency and the sound pressure level of the acoustic signal S3 or S4 reaches the region E1 in FIG. 5 by the second rotation (inversion) after the period T4, the pulse signal P1 is generated at the time T2 in the detection signal S5. To do.

  The detection signal S5 is normally at a low level, and the pulse signal P1 is generated when the detection signal S5 is inverted to a high level for a predetermined time width W1. Here, the time width W1 is substantially equivalent to the normal rotation or inversion time of the crushing unit 1, and is set to be shorter than ½ of the period T4. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the crushing sound from being detected a plurality of times during one normal rotation or reversal operation and combining the first pulse signal P1 and the second pulse signal P1.

  When the pulse signal P1 is detected twice during the period T4, the control unit 43 changes the control signal S6 from the high level to the low level at a time T3 having a predetermined delay time from the time T2, as shown in FIG. 6B. Invert to level. Here, the predetermined delay time is a time suitable for removing noise or the like due to electromagnetic waves, and is set to a time shorter than ½ of the period T4. By doing in this way, the normal rotation or reversal operation | movement after the 3rd time of the crushing unit 10 can be prevented. The switch SW1 to which the control signal S6 is input is turned off from the time T3, and the crushing process of the disposer 1 is stopped.

  Further, the control unit 43 inverts the notification signal S7 from the low level to the high level at time T3 (see FIG. 6C). The buzzer 46 to which the notification signal S7 is input outputs a notification sound (warning sound) from time T3. As described above, the foreign object detection processing by the microphone 41 and the control device 40 is executed.

  Hereinafter, a series of crushing processing and foreign matter detection processing of the disposer 1 will be described step by step. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of the crushing process and the foreign object detection process of the disposer 1. The disposer 1 in this example is configured to execute a crushing process and a foreign matter detection process when a predetermined bag is collected in the crushing chamber 7 and then the inlet 7a is closed by, for example, the opening / closing lid 8. . With these as processing conditions, in step A1 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 7, the control device 40 has received an activation command when the operation unit 45 is operated or when the open / close lid 8 is closed. Monitor whether or not. When the activation command is input, the process proceeds to step A2 and the crushing process is started.

  In step A2, the control unit 43 inverts the control signal S6 from the low level to the high level and executes the crushing process. At this time, the switch SW1 to which the control signal S6 is input is turned ON, the power is supplied from the AC power supply 50 to the drive motor 31, and the crushing process is started.

  In step A3, foreign object detection processing is started, and the microphones 41a and 41b output acoustic signals S3 and S4. At this time, the microphones 41 a and 41 b start collecting sound in response to an activation command from the control unit 43. Further, step A2 and step A3 may be started simultaneously and executed in parallel. The acoustic signals S3 and S4 are input to the foreign object detection unit 44.

  In step A <b> 4, the foreign object detection unit 44 reads the functional expression L <b> 1 from the memory 47. Step A3 and step A4 may also be started at the same time and executed in parallel.

  In step A5, the foreign object detection unit 44 compares the function formula L1 with the acoustic signals S3 and S4. At this time, the foreign object detection unit 44 determines whether either the acoustic signal S3 or S4 has reached a frequency and sound pressure level higher than the boundary line according to the function equation L1. As a result of the determination, if either the acoustic signal S3 or S4 has reached a frequency and sound pressure level that are higher than the boundary line according to the function equation L1, the process proceeds to step A6, and if not, the process proceeds to step A7.

  When the process proceeds to step A6, the foreign object detector 44 outputs a pulse signal P1 to the detection signal S5. At this time, the foreign matter detection unit 44 generates a pulse signal P1 that reaches a high level in the detection signal S5 that is at a low level at a time when either of the acoustic signals S3 or S4 is higher than the boundary line by the function equation L1. Let

  In step A7, it is determined whether or not the pulse signal P1 is output twice during the period T4 to the detection signal S5. Here, when the pulse signal P1 is input in step A6, the control unit 43, for example, a predetermined relay point in the control unit 43 only during the period T4 from the input time (rising time of the pulse signal P1). V1 is inverted from the Low level to the High level and held (see Step A9 described later). The controller 43 determines that the second pulse signal P1 is input when the pulse signal P1 is further input during the period T4 in which the relay point V1 is at the high level. As a result of the determination, if the pulse signal P1 is input twice during the period T4, the process proceeds to step A10, and if not, the process proceeds to step A8.

  When the process proceeds to step A8, the control unit 43 determines whether or not the pulse signal P1 is input in step A6. If it is input, the process proceeds to step A9. If it is not input, the process returns to step A3.

  When the process proceeds to step A9, the control unit 43 reverses the relay point V1 to the high level here, and then returns to step A3. The relay point V1 is held at the high level only for the period T4 by the counter inside the control unit 43.

  When it is determined in step A7 that the second pulse signal P1 has been input and the process proceeds to step A10, the control unit 43 stops the crushing process and outputs a notification signal S7 to turn on the buzzer 46. Let it ring. Here, the control unit 43 inverts the control signal S6 from the High level to the Low level at time T3, and inverts the notification signal S7 from the Low level to the High level. As described above, the crushing process and the foreign object detection process by the disposer 1 are executed.

  Moreover, since the disposer 1 in the present embodiment has a configuration in which the crushing process is not performed unless the opening / closing lid 8 is closed, there is little possibility that a foreign object is detected after the crushing process has progressed to some extent. For this reason, the period T4 is set to a very short time, for example, about 0.1 to 1 second, and the time required for all of the series of crushing processes from the start of the crushing process to the normal termination of the crushing process (for example, about 60 seconds). 6) and the foreign object detection process shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are executed together with the crushing process only after about 10 seconds from the start of), and then the period T4 is set to about 5 seconds to detect the foreign object. Only the crushing process may be performed without performing the process. Of course, the foreign matter detection process shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 may be performed over the entire time required for the crushing process.

  In that case, the period T4 may be a constant period over the entire time required for the crushing process, or may be a period different from the start of the crushing process until a predetermined time elapses.

  FIG. 8 and subsequent figures show an example of the crushing unit 10 applicable to the present invention. The crushing unit 10 is composed of a plurality of crushing blades. In this example, five crushing blades of a first rotary crushing blade 12, a first fixed crushing blade 13, a second rotary crushing blade 14, a second fixed crushing blade 15 and a third rotary crushing blade 16 are laminated to form a crushing unit. 10 is configured.

  8 shows a configuration example of the first rotary crushing blade 12 arranged at the uppermost stage of the crushing unit 10, FIG. 8A is a top view thereof, FIG. B is a front view, and FIG. C is a side view of FIG. is there. The first rotary crushing blade 12 includes a single stirring arm 20 that extends horizontally from the side portion of the bearing portion 19. As for the 1st rotation crushing blade 12, the pressing surface 20a is formed in the front and back both surfaces in the rotation direction of the stirring arm 20. As shown in FIG.

  The pushing surface 20 a is an inclined surface (tapered surface) inclined in a direction in which the upper end protrudes from the lower end on both side surfaces of the stirring arm 20. By forming the pushing surfaces 20a on both side surfaces of the agitating arm 20, the first rotary crushing blade 12 can apply a pressing force to the garbage that is in contact with the pushing surface 20a by bidirectional rotation. it can. Thereby, the 1st rotation crushing blade 12 takes in garbage by rotation operation, and pushes it into the crushing blade of a lower stage.

  Moreover, the edge 20b is formed in the lower end side of the both sides | surfaces of the pushing surface 20a, and the 1st rotation crushing blade 12 is a crushing blade which crushes garbage roughly in cooperation with the 1st fixed crushing blade 13 shown in FIG. Function.

  A handle 21 is formed on the upper surface of the stirring arm 20 in the first rotary crushing blade 12. The handle 21 is provided at a position 90 ° away from the stirring arm 20 so as to extend from the bearing portion 19 to the left and right by the same length. The handle 21 functions as a grip (handle) when pulling up the crushing unit 10. Since the handle 21 is used as a grip portion, the handle 21 is selected to have a length that allows a finger to be applied.

  The bearing portion 19 is provided with an insertion hole 19a through which a shaft head (locking portion) of a rotary drive shaft 36 provided in the third rotary crushing blade 16 described later can be inserted. The insertion hole 19a has a D-shaped cross section. Accordingly, the corresponding part of the rotary drive shaft 36 is also formed in a D-shaped cross section, so that both are rotationally integrated.

  FIG. 9 shows a configuration example of the first fixed crushing blade 13 disposed in the lower stage of the first rotary crushing blade 12, FIG. 9A is a top view thereof, FIG. B is a front view thereof, and FIG. . The first fixed crushing blade 13 includes two arms 23 extending horizontally from the hub 22 at intervals of 180 °. Each arm 23 has a flat plate shape, and edges are formed on upper and lower ends of both side surfaces, and functions as a crushing blade in cooperation with the first rotary crushing blade 12 and the second rotary crushing blade 14 described above.

  Each arm 23 is provided with a tab 24 that functions as a rotation preventing means at each tip. By fitting the tab 24 to the fitting portion 4 a of the housing 4, the rotation of the first fixed crushing blade 13 is restricted. In this example, a long tab having an entire length selected in consideration of the mounting position (depth) of the first rotary crushing blade 12 with respect to the hopper 3 is used.

  In this example, a tab 24 extending below the arm 23 is provided. As shown in FIG. 9C, the width of the tab 24 is selected to be substantially the same as the width of the fitting portion 4a. This is to reduce backlash after the tab 24 is attached to the fitting portion 4a and to more smoothly engage the tab 24 to the fitting portion 4a.

  When the second rotary crushing blade 14 is interposed between the first fixed crushing blade 13 and the second fixed crushing blade 15 by the tab 24, a gap having a predetermined height is formed. Therefore, in this example, the length of the tab 24 is selected to be approximately ½ of the length to the cutting edge of the second rotary crushing blade 14.

  The diameter of the inner hole 23a of the hub 22 is larger than the diameter of the shaft part of the second rotary crushing blade 14 and the diameter of the rotary drive shaft 36, and the dimension does not interfere with the shaft part of the second rotary crushing blade 14 and the rotary drive shaft 36. It has become.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the second rotary crushing blade 14. The second rotary crushing blade 14 is disposed in the lower stage of the first fixed crushing blade 13. FIG. 10A is a top view thereof, and FIG. 10B is a sectional view taken along arrow B10-B10.

  The second rotary crushing blade 14 includes three arms 28 that extend radially from the hub 27 at intervals of 120 °. Each arm 28 has a radius slightly shorter than the inner diameter of the hopper 3 so as not to contact the inner wall of the hopper 3. Each arm 28 is formed with a comb tooth portion 28a having a predetermined pitch on the bottom surface.

  An engagement hole 27 a is formed at the center of the hub 27 of the second rotary crushing blade 14, and is fitted to the rotation drive shaft 36, whereby a rotational force is applied to the second rotary crushing blade 14. Therefore, like the second rotary crushing blade 14, the engagement hole 27 a that contacts the second rotary crushing blade 14 is a non-circular shape (for example, a square hole) so as to be rotationally integrated with the rotary drive shaft 36. . The cross section may have a D shape as described above.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the second fixed crushing blade 15. The 2nd fixed crushing blade 15 is arrange | positioned at the lower stage of the 2nd rotary crushing blade 14 so that the 2nd rotary crushing blade 14 may mesh | engage. 11A is a top view and FIG. 11B is a cross-sectional view taken along arrow B11-B11.

  The second fixed crushing blade 15 has a shape in which a ring 33 surrounds eight arms 31 extending radially in a tangential direction from the hub 30 at equal intervals. A pair of tabs 33 a are formed on the outer periphery of the ring 33 at intervals of 180 °. The pair of tabs 33 a function as rotation preventing means for fixing the second fixed crushing blade 15 to the housing 4. Therefore, the pair of tabs 33a is formed as a plate that is slightly narrower than the width so that the tabs 33a can be fitted into the fitting portion 4a. This width is substantially the same as the width of the tab 24 of the first fixed crushing blade 13. The rotation of the second fixed crushing blade 15 is regulated by fitting the tab 33a to the fitting portion 4a.

  These tabs 33a have a predetermined height, and the tab 24 of the first fixed crushing blade 13 is in contact with the upper surface of the tab 33a, so that the gap between the first fixed crushing blade 13 and the second fixed crushing blade 15 is reached. A gap having a predetermined height is formed, and the size is selected so that the second rotary crushing blade 14 is just engaged. The center hole 30a of the hub 30 is dimensioned so as not to interfere with the rotation drive shaft 36.

  Of the eight arms 31, the second fixed crushing blade 15 has a comb tooth portion 31a formed on the upper surface of the six arms 31. The comb teeth 31a of the second fixed crushing blade 15 has a pitch that meshes with the comb teeth 28a of the second rotary crushing blade 14 shown in FIG. 12, and the second rotary crushing blade 14 and the second fixed crushing blade 15 are overlapped. As a result, the comb teeth portions 28a and 31a are in an engaged state in which a slight gap is formed.

  Thereby, the comb tooth portion 31a of the second fixed crushing blade 15 crushes the garbage sent from the upper crushing blade in cooperation with the comb tooth portion 28a of the second rotary crushing blade 14.

  As described above, since the number of the arms 28 of the second rotary crushing blade 14 is three and the number of the arms 31 of the second fixed crushing blade 15 is eight, the distance between the arms 31 is narrower than the distance between the arms 28. For this reason, when the comb teeth 31a are provided on all the eight arms 31, the comb teeth 31a of the second fixed crushing blade 15 always exist between the arms 28 of the second rotary crushing blade 14, and a certain amount of When the block-shaped garbage of a magnitude | size is thrown in, the situation which the garbage does not enter between the arms 28 of the 2nd crushing blade 14 and becomes difficult to crush occurs.

  Therefore, in the second fixed crushing blade 15, among the eight arms 31, for example, the two arms 32 are not provided with the comb-tooth portion 31 a, so that the second rotary crushing blade 14 is rotated during the rotation operation. 2 When the arm 31 not provided with the comb tooth portion 31a of the fixed crushing blade 15 is positioned between the arms 28 of the second rotary crushing blade 14, a wide space is formed in the circumferential direction.

  Thereby, even when block-shaped garbage having a certain size is introduced, the garbage enters between the arms 28 of the second rotary crushing blade 14, and the comb tooth portion 28 a is rotated by the rotation of the second rotary crushing blade 14. And the garbage is crushed in cooperation with the comb tooth portion 31a of the other arm 31 of the second fixed crushing blade 15.

  In addition, since the crushing ability is reduced when the number of the arms 31 that are not provided with the comb teeth 31a in the second fixed crushing blade 15 is large, for example, when the eight arms 31 are provided, the arms 32 that are not provided with the comb teeth 31a. As shown in the drawing, about two are preferable.

  Each arm 32 extends radially along the tangential direction of the hub 30 so that when the second rotary crushing blade 14 rotates, the meshing point with the second fixed crushing blade 15 is shifted in the circumferential direction, The crushing load peak is suppressed and the load is flattened.

  As shown in FIG. 11A, the second fixed crushing blade 15 has pressing surfaces 31 b and 32 a formed on the side surfaces located on the rotation direction side among the side surfaces of the arms 31 and 32. The pressing surfaces 31b and 32a are both wave-like wavefronts, and are formed as wavefronts having a taper whose lower end is shorter than the upper end. By making the pressing surfaces 31b and 32a into wavefronts, the garbage is captured by the concave portions having the taper, and the movement of the garbage in the radial direction is suppressed, so that the garbage can be reliably crushed.

  FIG. 12 shows a configuration example of the third rotary crushing blade 16, FIG. A is a top view thereof, and FIG. 12B is a front view thereof. The third rotary crushing blade 16 is configured as a disc 35, and a large number of slits 35 a are arranged on the entire surface of the disc 35 excluding the central hub 36. In the third rotary crushing blade 16 of this example, a plurality of slit groups are formed, and in each slit group, adjacent slits 35a are arranged substantially in parallel.

  The upper surface of the third rotary crushing blade 16 is a flat surface and rotates while contacting the bottom surface of each arm 31 of the second fixed crushing blade 15. The slit 35a penetrates the third rotary crushing blade 16 from the front and back, and a sharp edge is formed at the upper opening side opening edge of the slit 35a.

  The upper surface of the third rotary crushing blade 16 rotates while rubbing against the bottom surface of the arm 31 of the second fixed crushing blade 15, but one side of the arms 31 and 32 of the second fixed crushing blade 15 is inclined to the bottom surface side. Since the wave fronts 31b and 32a are formed, the third rotary crushing blade 16 rotates the third waste crushing blade 16 in contact with the garbage (that is crushed to a certain size) in contact with the wave fronts 31b and 32a. A force for pressing the rotary crushing blade 16 can be applied.

  Garbage that has been crushed by the comb tooth portion 28a (FIG. 10) of the second rotary crushing blade 14 and the comb tooth portion 31a (FIG. 11) of the second fixed crushing blade 15 and dropped onto the upper surface of the third rotary crushing blade 16 Although caught in the slit 35a, the garbage is pressed against the slit 35a by the wave fronts 31b and 32a as the third rotary crushing blade 16 rotates. The garbage is crushed by the edge portion of the slit 35a by this rotation operation. The finely crushed food waste falls downward through the slit 35a, passes through the bottom plate 6a of the hopper 3, and is discharged from the drain pipe connection port 6b to the outside. In addition, the slit 35a forms the opening part (or opening step part) which becomes wide toward the bottom face side, so that the garbage pushed into the slit 35a easily falls.

  A rotary drive shaft 36 is integrally formed with the disk 35 at the center of the third rotary crushing blade 16. The rotary drive shaft 36 is rotationally integrated with the first and second rotary crushing blades 12 and 14 and is rotationally free with respect to the first and second fixed crushing blades 13 and 15. It is made into a shape. Therefore, the rotary drive shaft 36 corresponding to the first and second rotary crushing blades 12 and 14 is a square shaft portion (fitting shaft portion), and the rest are round shafts. And the screw part is cut in the axial head, and it is comprised so that it may function as the latching | locking part 36a.

  A fitting portion 37 that functions as a part of the rotation drive shaft 36 is provided on the lower surface of the disc 35, and is configured to be rotated and engaged with the drive shaft 6c of the reduction unit described above. In order for the fitting part 37 to be in a good fitting state with the drive shaft 6c, the inner hole 37a is a square hole or a hexagonal hole. It is assumed that the fitting length of the fitting portion 37 is selected so that the fitting portion 37 is in a sufficiently fitted state with the drive shaft 6c of the speed reduction unit.

  A crushing unit 10 in which a plurality of crushing blades 12 to 16 are integrated is obtained by screwing and tightening a screw 29a from an upper end of a locking portion 36a which is a shaft head of the rotary drive shaft 36 (FIG. 2). reference). At this time, the tabs 24 of the first fixed crushing blades 13 and the tabs 33a of the second fixed crushing blades 15 are integrated in a state where their positional relationships are adjusted so that they are continuous (in a straight line).

  Then, when the crushing unit 10 is lowered to the bottom surface of the housing 4 with the tabs 24 and 33a fitted along the fitting portion 4a, the fitting portion 37 provided on the third rotary crushing blade 16 is illustrated. 2 and the drive shaft 6c of the speed reduction unit shown in FIG. A presser plate 95 is attached to the fitting portion 4 a, and the presser plate 95 is fixed to the housing 4. Thus, the crushing unit 10 is rotatably attached to the housing 4. The crushing unit 10 crushes garbage while repeating normal rotation and inversion. The crushing unit 10 is configured as described above.

  Thus, according to the disposer 1 as the first embodiment of the present invention, the microphone 41 detects the acoustic signals S3 and S4 during the crushing process, and the foreign matter detector 44 receives the acoustic signals S3 and S4. A foreign object is detected. Accordingly, since the type or size of the foreign matter mixed in the claw in the crushing chamber can be estimated from the frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signals S3 and S4, the foreign matter that is not the target for crushing can be identified. Therefore, for example, the crushing process for metal foreign matters such as spoons and forks can be stopped, and the crushing process for difficult-to-crush potatoes such as bones of meat for livestock can be continued. In addition, since the foreign matter detection process can be executed only for the wrinkles in the crushing chamber, it is possible to prevent malfunction due to the magnetic body of the disposer main body as in the case of using a magnetic sensor, for example.

  Further, by stopping the crushing process when foreign matter is continuously detected at an interval substantially equal to the rotation cycle T4, it is possible to prevent malfunction due to sound generated due to a cause other than the crushing process. Note that the number of consecutive foreign object detections is not limited to two in this example, and may be three or more. Furthermore, in order to improve safety, the crushing process can be stopped by one detection.

  In this example, as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the microphone 41 is installed on the upper side of the crushing chamber 7. You may install in the outer peripheral part. The middle part of the crushing chamber 7 is, for example, near the outer periphery of the installation position of the first rotary crushing blade 12, and the bottom side of the crushing chamber 7 is, for example, near the outer periphery of the installation position of the second fixed crushing blade 15. Further, a microphone 41 may be installed on the outer periphery of the hopper 3. In this way, the microphone 41 can be easily and reliably waterproofed. One microphone 41 may be installed, or three or more microphones 41 may be installed. Further, when a plurality of microphones 41 are installed, they may be installed with different heights.

  In this example, the metallic foreign matter is detected by the foreign matter detection processing, but the present invention is not limited to this, and foreign matter having a predetermined size or more than a predetermined hardness such as pottery or wooden tableware is used. A foreign object may be detected. In this way, the crushing process for an excessively large foreign substance or a hard foreign substance that is difficult to crush can be stopped, so that the crushing unit 10 can be prevented from being damaged.

Further, the acoustic signals S3 and S4 may be used for various controls by the control device 40 by detecting the amount of water supply, the amount of wrinkles, the end of the crushing process, and the like.
In parallel with the foreign object detection process of this example, the foreign object detection process using a load current or a metal sensor may be executed. For example, in parallel with the foreign object detection process, by executing the reversal control in the overload state by the load current detection of the drive motor 31, hard foreign objects such as metal, earthenware, and wooden tableware can be detected quickly. By doing in this way, while being able to perform detection with higher accuracy, safety can be further improved.

  FIG. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of a disposer 200 as a second embodiment of the present invention. The disposer 200 shown in FIG. 13 includes a crushing chamber 210 for crushing, a crushing blade portion 220 for crushing processing, a drive motor 31, a microphone 41 (41a and 41b) for sound detection, and a control device 40 (see FIG. 4). Provided and attached to the lower surface side of the kitchen sink S. Here, the same names and reference numerals as those in the first embodiment have the same functions and the same structures, so that the description thereof is omitted.

  The disposer 200 is a continuous throwing type disposer that, when a start command is input from the control device 40, rotates the crushing blade portion 220 by the drive motor 31 to continuously crush the soot sequentially put into the crushing chamber 210. is there.

  A microphone 41 is installed on the outer periphery of the crushing chamber 210 as in the first embodiment. The microphone 41 is constituted by microphones 41 a and 41 b, and is installed here so as to face each other on the outer periphery of the upper part of the crushing chamber 210. The microphone 41 collects crushing sound generated in the crushing chamber 210. Moreover, the control apparatus 40 is connected to the microphone 41, and a crushing process and a foreign material detection process are performed.

  Further, when the crushing process and the foreign matter detection process as shown in FIG. 7 are applied to such a continuous throwing-type disposer 200, the foreign substance detection process can be executed before the crushing process is executed. In this case, the crushing process is not started in step A2 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 7, and instead, several forward and reverse operations are executed as preprocessing. In this normal rotation and reversal operation, the normal rotation and reversal operations as in the crushing unit 10 of the first embodiment are repeatedly executed at a predetermined cycle T4. Further, in step A2, the crushing process is not forwardly rotated and the reversal operation is not performed, and sound generated when the soot is put into the crushing chamber 210 may be collected.

  Except for step A2, the foreign matter detection process up to step A8 is performed in the same manner, and when no foreign matter is detected, the crushing blade 220 is rotated to execute the crushing process.

  In addition, the foreign object detection process may be continued during the crushing process of the disposer 200, and the crushing process may be stopped immediately when a foreign object is detected in step A5.

  As described above, according to the disposer 200 as the second embodiment, the foreign matter detection processing by the microphone 41 is executed by executing the normal rotation and the reverse operation before the crushing processing. Accordingly, since the type or size of the foreign matter mixed in the claw in the crushing chamber 210 before execution of the crushing process can be estimated from the frequency and sound pressure level of the acoustic signals S3 and S4, for example, a spoon or a fork that is not crushable Therefore, it is possible to prevent the foreign matter from jumping out from the charging port 210a which is a soot inlet to the crushing chamber 210 simultaneously with the start of the crushing processing. Furthermore, the foreign object detection process for the continuously put soot can be continued even during the crushing process.

  FIG. 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of a disposer 300 as a third embodiment of the present invention. The disposer 300 shown in FIG. 14 is obtained by changing the number and installation positions of the microphones 41 of the disposer 200 of the second embodiment shown in FIG.

  The disposer 300 is provided with a crushing chamber 210 for throwing potatoes, a crushing blade portion 220 for crushing processing, a drive motor 31, a microphone 41 for sound detection, and a control device 40 (see FIG. 4). It is attached. Here, the same names and reference numerals as those in the first and second embodiments have the same function and the same structure, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  Here, the microphone 41 includes three microphones 41a, 41b, and 41c. Here, the microphone 41 a is installed near the upper side of the crushing chamber 210, the microphone 41 b is installed near the middle of the crushing chamber 210, and the microphone 41 c is installed on the bottom side of the crushing chamber 210. Here, the vicinity of the upper side of the crushing chamber 210 is, for example, the peripheral portion of the connecting pipe portion with the kitchen sink S, and the middle abdominal portion is, for example, the periphery of the taper portion of the hopper that constitutes the outer peripheral portion of the crushing chamber 210. The bottom side is, for example, the outer peripheral portion around the installation position of the crushing blade portion 220. Each microphone 41 detects sound from each position during the crushing process, and outputs acoustic signals S3, S4, and S8 (acoustic signals output from the microphone 41c, not shown) to the foreign matter detection unit 44.

  Thus, according to the disposer 300 as the third embodiment, the plurality of microphones 41 are installed at different heights. Therefore, the crushing sound in the crushing chamber 210 can be collected without fail.

  The present invention is extremely suitable when applied to a sink in a kitchen of a general house or a commercial kitchen.

It is a top view which shows the structural example (the 1) of the disposer 1 as a 1st Example. It is B1-B1 arrow sectional drawing which shows the structural example (the 2) of the disposer 1. FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration example of a housing 4. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a control device 40. FIG. It is a figure which shows the frequency-sound pressure level characteristic example of a crushing sound. (A)-(C) are figures which show the foreign material detection example of the disposer 1. FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the crushing process of the disposer 1, and the example of a foreign material detection. (A)-(C) are the top views, front views, and side views which show the structural example of the 1st rotation crushing blade 12. FIG. (A)-(C) are the top views, front views, and side views which show the structural example of the 1st fixed crushing blade 13. FIG. (A) And (B) is the top view which shows the structural example of the 2nd rotary crushing blade 14, and B10-B10 arrow sectional drawing. (A) And (B) is the top view which shows the structural example of the 2nd fixed crushing blade 15, and B11-B11 arrow sectional drawing. (A) And (B) is the top view and front view which show the structural example of the 3rd rotation crushing blade 16. FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structural example of the disposer 200 as a 2nd Example. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structural example of the disposer 300 as a 3rd Example.

Explanation of symbols

1,200,300 ... disposer, 3 ... hopper, 4 ... housing, 7 ... crushing chamber, 8 ... opening / closing lid, 10 ... crushing unit, 31 ... drive motor, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 40 ... Control apparatus, 41 ... Microphone, 42 ... Microphone storage part, 43 ... Control part, 44 ... Foreign object detection part, 45 ... Operation part, 46 ... Buzzer, 47 ···memory

Claims (6)

In the disposer where the input port is attached to the drainage port of the sink of the kitchen, and crushes the straw that has been input from the input port into the crushing chamber,
Sound detection means for detecting sound generated in the crushing chamber and outputting an acoustic signal based on the detected sound;
A disposer comprising: a foreign matter detecting means for detecting foreign matter mixed in the bag based on the acoustic signal from the acoustic detecting means. The acoustic detection means includes
The disposer according to claim 1, wherein the disposer is provided on an outer peripheral portion of the crushing chamber. The foreign object detection means includes
The disposer according to claim 1, wherein a metallic foreign object is detected. The foreign object detection means includes
The disposer according to claim 1, wherein the foreign object is detected by identifying an acoustic frequency and a sound pressure level based on the acoustic signal. A control means for executing the crushing process by rotating and reversing the crushing blade portion for crushing the ridges at a predetermined cycle;
The control means includes
The disposer according to claim 1, wherein the crushing process is stopped when the foreign matter detection unit detects the foreign matter a plurality of times substantially in synchronization with the cycle. When the foreign matter is detected by the foreign matter detection means,
2. The disposer according to claim 1, further comprising a control unit that stops the crushing process and operates a foreign matter notification unit that notifies that the foreign matter has been detected.

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