JP2009301587A - Water vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water vending machine capable of completely removing harmful substances such as cryptosporidium, nitrate nitrogen, soluble lead and arsenic, and selling unboiled water. <P>SOLUTION: The water vending machine 1 includes a water cleaner 2, a water supplier 3 and a metallic or plastic aqueduct 4 connecting them, etc., and the water cleaner 2 and the water supplier 3 can be separately arranged. Also, the water cleaner 2 includes a filter section where a first polymer nonwoven fabric filter, a first high density activated carbon filter, a second polymer nonwoven fabric filter, a reverse osmosis membrane filter, a second high density activated carbon filter, and a negative ion exchange filter, etc., are arranged in the order. Further, the water supplier 2 includes a water supply nozzle, an ultraviolet sterilizer, and a currency identification and keeping section, etc. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a water vending machine, and more particularly to a water vending machine that is non-heated and can be used as drinking water.

As environmental destruction by industrial waste and general waste progresses, pollution of water sources is also progressing, and there is concern about the contamination of tap water.

Therefore, in recent years, an increasing number of people are purchasing water that has been bottled in plastic bottles, deep sea water, and the like. In addition, in order to obtain uncontaminated water, an increasing number of people use a water (cooked water) obtained by digging a well in the property and heating the water pumped up from the well.

However, each of these has the following problems.

First, bottling water has a problem that the price per volume is as high as several hundred times as much as tap water, and it is not possible to cover all drinking water. In addition, the bottled water has a problem that the raw water component varies slightly depending on the season and place, so that the taste cannot be kept constant. Furthermore, the bottled water is a plastic bottle that is used as a container, causing environmental destruction, and is sold only in a certain amount, and the user cannot purchase the amount he wants. There was also a point.

Next, when cooking water is taken up from a well and stored, chlorine is obligatory, which has a safety problem. Moreover, when using cooking water, it is also obliged to sterilize by heating, which requires a lot of energy and generates a large amount of carbon dioxide.

Further, in any of these waters, there is a problem that harmful substances such as cryptosporidium, nitrate nitrogen, soluble lead, and arsenic cannot be completely removed.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a water vending machine capable of solving the above-mentioned various problems and selling fresh water.

That is, the water vending machine according to claim 1 includes a water purifier having at least a reverse osmosis membrane filter, and a water supply device having an ultraviolet sterilizer and automatically weighing and selling purified water produced by the water purifier. ing.

By configuring the water vending machine in this way, we can supply clean water that can be drunk with raw water safely without causing secondary environmental damage caused by plastic bottles or carbon dioxide. Can be manufactured and sold.

In the water vending machine according to claim 2, the water purifier and the water supply device are connected by a water conduit, and the water purifier and the water supply device can be arranged separately.

Thereby, the freedom degree of arrangement | positioning of an apparatus can be raised, for example, a water purifier can be hidden behind a thing and a water supply apparatus can also be set | placed conspicuously. Moreover, even if it is a narrow space, since only a water supply apparatus should just be set | placed, an installation location can be increased.

Further, the vending machine according to claim 3 includes a communication device for exchanging information with an external computer.

This makes it possible to automatically manage the operating status and profits of the water vending machine.

The water vending machine according to claim 4 includes a prepaid card reader and / or a payment device using wireless communication.

In this way, user convenience can be enhanced by diversifying payment methods.

The water purifier constituting the water vending machine according to claim 5 includes a first polymerized nonwoven fabric filter, a first high-density activated carbon filter disposed downstream of the first polymerized nonwoven fabric filter, A reverse osmosis membrane filter disposed downstream of the first high-density activated carbon filter, and a second high-density activated carbon filter disposed downstream of the reverse osmosis membrane filter.

The water vending machine according to claim 6 is provided with a second polymer nonwoven fabric filter between the first high-density activated carbon filter and the reverse osmosis membrane filter.

In the water vending machine according to claim 7, an anion exchange filter is provided downstream of the second high-density activated carbon filter.

By these filters, harmful substance elements such as Cryptosporidium, nitrate nitrogen, soluble lead, and arsenic can be surely removed.

Furthermore, in the water vending machine according to claim 8, the second high-density activated carbon filter includes fossil coral and / or reef-building coral.
Thereby, minerals, such as calcium, can be added to purified water.

The water vending machine according to the present invention includes a water purifier having a reverse osmosis membrane filter having a high level of water purifying capability and an anion exchange filter for removing nitrate nitrogen, a water supply device having an ultraviolet sterilization unit, and the like. I have. Therefore, it is possible to produce and sell purified water that is safe and can be drunk with raw water according to the user's demand without causing secondary environmental destruction due to PET bottles or carbon dioxide.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the water vending machine concerning this invention. It is the figure which looked at the internal structure of the water purifier from the one side of the water purifier. It is the figure which looked at the internal structure of the water purifier from the other side of the water purifier. It is a figure which shows typically the flowing water path | route of a water purifier. It is an external appearance perspective view of a water supply apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the main structures of a water supply apparatus. It is a figure which shows the main structures of an ultraviolet sterilization part. It is a figure which shows the structure of the 2nd high density activated carbon filter in another Example.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a water vending machine 1, and as shown in this figure, the water vending machine 1 is made of a water purification device 2, a water supply device 3, and a metal or plastic made by connecting them. The water conduit 4 is provided. Therefore, each of these components will be described below. In addition, by making the water purification apparatus 2 and the water supply apparatus 3 separable, the freedom degree at the time of arrange | positioning the vending machine of water can be made high.

First, FIG.2 and FIG.3 is a figure which shows the internal structure of the water purifier 2, FIG. 2 is the figure seen from one side, FIG. 3 is the figure seen from the other side. As shown in these drawings, the water purifier 2 includes a raw water supply port 21, a high-pressure pump 22, filter units F1 to F4, a flow accumulator 23, a production water port 24, and the like. An anion exchange filter F4 described later is disposed outside the housing of the water purifier 2.

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the flowing water path of the water purifier 2. As shown in this figure, tap water is taken into the water purifier 2 from the raw water supply port 21 and pressurized by the high-pressure pump 22. However, after being purified by the filter parts F <b> 1 to F <b> 4, it is discharged to the water conduit 4. In this figure, the flow of water leading to the purified water is indicated by a solid line, and the flow of waste water is indicated by a dotted line. In addition, the three reverse osmosis membrane filters F3 and the two anion exchange filters F4 are described with one filter because the filter portions are described with one drawing.

Below, each component of the water purifier 2 is demonstrated.

One end of the raw water supply port 21 is connected to a tap water such as a water tap or a well water storage tank, and the other end is connected to a high-pressure pump 22.

The high-pressure pump 22 is driven by a power source such as an electric motor and applies a pressure necessary for filtration by a reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 described later to water.

The filter parts F1 to F4 are, from the upstream side, the first polymer nonwoven fabric filter F1, the first high density activated carbon filter F2, the second polymer nonwoven fabric filter F1, the three reverse osmosis membrane filters F3, and the second high density. An activated carbon filter F2 and two anion exchange filters F4 are connected in series.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first and second polymerized nonwoven fabric filters F1 are provided with a discharge pipe F1b having a large number of small holes on the outer periphery at the center of the cylindrical case F1a, and the discharge pipe F1b Is a filter F1c made of a polymerized nonwoven fabric of olefin polymer, polyester fiber and polyester. The end of the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the upper part of the case F1a, the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the outlet of the discharge pipe F1b, and the waste water pipe 26 is connected to the lower part of the case F1a.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first and second high-density activated carbon filters F2 are provided with approximately 5 μm pores of sediment filters F2b and F2c in the upper and lower portions of a cylindrical case F2a, and between the filters F2b and F2c. Are filled with fibrous, granular and solid activated carbon F2d. Further, the end of the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the lower center of the case F2a, the waste water pipe 26 is connected to the lower peripheral part, and the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the upper part of the case F2a.

As shown in FIG. 4, the reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 is provided with a discharge pipe F3b having a large number of small holes on the outer periphery at the center of a cylindrical case F3a. A filter F3c made of a 0001 μm polyamide polymer film and a polysulfone film is wound. The end of the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the upper part of the case F3a, the connecting pipe 25 is connected to the outlet of the discharge pipe F3b, and the waste water pipe 26 is connected to the lower peripheral part. The reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 can almost completely remove Cryptosporidium.

As shown in FIG. 4, the anion exchange filter F4 is provided with approximately 5 μm pores of the sediment filters F4b and F4c in the upper and lower portions of the cylindrical case F4a, and is fibrous or granular between the filters F4b and F4c. In this case, a chloride ion exchange type anion exchange resin F4d is filled. Further, the end of the connection pipe 25 is connected to the lower center of the case F4a, the waste water pipe 26 is connected to the lower peripheral part, and the connection pipe 25 is connected to the upper part of the case F4a.

One end of the production water port 24 is connected to the connection pipe 25 and the other end is connected to the anion exchange filter F4. The purified water produced by the water purification device 2 is supplied to the water conduit 4 via the anion exchange filter F4. discharge.

In addition, the following excellent effects are acquired by setting it as the above filter structures.

First, as in the conventional water purifier, if the reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 is not provided upstream of the anion exchange filter F4, nitrate nitrogen cannot be removed almost completely with the above filter configuration. Nitrate nitrogen can be removed to some extent if there is an anion exchange filter F4, but if there is no reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 upstream, the exchange capacity of the anion exchange resin will be full before adsorbing nitrate nitrogen. Because. If the reverse osmosis membrane filter F3 is provided upstream of the anion exchange filter F4 as in the water purification apparatus 2, the amount of nitrate nitrogen adsorbed is improved by 15 times or more compared to the case where it is not provided, and nitrate nitrogen is completely removed. It can be removed.

Therefore, by providing the anion exchange filter F4 as in the water purification device 2, nitrate nitrogen that could not be removed by a conventional water purification device can be removed. Moreover, in the conventional reverse osmosis membrane water purifier, the pH of the purified water has become lower than the pH 5.6 of the drinking water standard, but in the water purifier 2, the pH of the purified water is maintained at a weak alkaline pH 7.4. Can do.

Furthermore, since the water purifier 2 is provided with the anion exchange filter F4 downstream of the second high-density activated carbon filter F2, the anion exchange filter F4 can be installed even if the ion exchange capacity of the anion exchange filter F4 decreases. Just by exchanging it, it is possible to produce purified water from which nitrate nitrogen has been completely removed. Contrary to the water purifier 2, when the high-density activated carbon filter F2 is provided downstream of the anion exchange filter F4, if the ion exchange capacity of the anion exchange filter F4 is reduced, the anion exchange filter F4 leaks. Since the nitrate nitrogen that has come out also enters the high-density activated carbon filter F2, in order to produce purified water from which nitrate nitrogen has been completely removed, the high-density activated carbon filter F2 must be replaced in addition to the anion exchange filter F4. There is a need to.

FIG. 5 is an external view of the water supply device 3. As shown in FIG. 5, the water supply device 3 supplies the container 5 with clean water to the front panel 31 having the money input port 31 a and the purchase button 31 b on the front surface. The water supply nozzle 32 is provided.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a main configuration of the water supply device 3. As shown in this figure, the water supply device 3 includes a water supply nozzle 32, a water supply port 33, a water supply channel 34, a currency identification storage unit 35, a control unit 36, a water supply amount adjustment unit 37, an ultraviolet sterilizer 38, and the like. Therefore, each of these components will be described below.

One end of the water supply port 33 is connected to the water conduit 4, and the other end is connected to the water supply channel 34. The water supply path 34 is a passage of purified water that reaches the water supply nozzle 32 via the water supply amount adjustment unit 37 and the ultraviolet sterilization unit 38.

The money identification storage unit 35 calculates the amount inserted from the money insertion slot 31a, notifies the control unit 36, and stores the inserted money, and is used in a conventional vending machine. Is.

The control unit 36 is a microcomputer that determines the amount of water supply based on the amount notified from the currency identification storage unit 35 when the purchase button 31b is pressed, and the water supply amount adjustment unit based on the determined water supply amount The opening / closing time of 37 is controlled.

The water supply amount adjustment unit 37 includes an electromagnetic valve 37a and a flow rate sensor 37b, and adjusts the amount of water supplied from the water supply nozzle 32 by opening and closing the electromagnetic valve 37a in accordance with instructions from the control unit 36.

As shown in FIG. 7, the ultraviolet sterilizer 38 includes an ultraviolet sterilization lamp 38a, a glass cover 38b covering the ultraviolet sterilization lamp 38a, an outer shell 38c, and the like. In addition, there is a space through which purified water passes between the glass cover 38b and the outer shell 38c. It is connected to the path 34. Therefore, if the purified water is passed from the inlet 38d to the outlet 38e while the ultraviolet germicidal lamp 38a is turned on, the purified water can be sterilized by the ultraviolet germicidal lamp 38a.

Next, an operation when water is sold by the water vending machine configured as described above will be described.

First, the purchaser of water puts money, sets the container 5 in the water supply apparatus 3, inserts a necessary amount from the money insertion port 31a, and presses the purchase button 31b.

Then, the tap water flows into the water purifier 3 and is purified by the filter parts F <b> 1 to F <b> 4, and then sent to the water feeder 3 through the water conduit 4. The supplied purified water is supplied to the ultraviolet sterilization unit 38 by an appropriate amount by the water supply amount adjustment unit 37, finally sterilized by the ultraviolet sterilization unit 38, and then supplied to the container 5 through the water supply nozzle 32.

In addition, this invention is not limited to this Example, A various change can be added according to the technical scope described in the claim.

For example, in the said Example, although the water purifier 2 used a total of nine filters, a filter structure can also be changed according to water quality. Specifically, if at least the first polymer nonwoven fabric filter F1, the first high-density activated carbon filter F2, the reverse osmosis membrane filter F3, and the second high-density activated carbon filter F2 are provided, they can be sold as raw water. You can get clean water. In addition, when the raw water is severely contaminated, it is possible to improve the water quality by adding various filters.

In addition to purifying water, a mechanism for adding various components such as various minerals and medicinal components to the purified water may be provided. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, various minerals may be added by replacing part of the activated carbon contained in the second high-density activated carbon filter 24 with fossil coral C1 or reef-building coral C2.

Moreover, the vending machine of water may be provided with the communication means which can exchange information with an external computer. Specifically, the water vending machine may include a modem or a transceiver that can communicate via a wireless communication line such as a PHS or a mobile phone, or a wired communication line such as a wide area LAN or a telephone line. This makes it possible to automatically manage the operating status and profits of the water vending machine.

Further, in place of or in combination with the currency identification storage unit 35 used in the above embodiment, a prepaid card reader, a payment device using wireless communication such as a PHS, a mobile phone, or Bluetooth may be used. Good. By diversifying payment methods, convenience for users can be enhanced.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the amount of purified water supplied is controlled according to the amount of money that has been input. However, the front panel 31 is provided with input means such as touch keys and output means such as a liquid crystal display. A person may operate the touch key to input a necessary amount of water supply and purchase it. Thereby, the convenience for the user can be further enhanced.

Finally, a temporary storage tank may be provided on the raw water supply port 21 side of the water purifier 2 in order to absorb fluctuations in the water pressure of the water source and stably produce purified water.

1 Water Vending Machine 2 Water Purification Equipment 3 Water Supply Equipment 4 Water Pipe

Claims (4)

A water purifier, an ultraviolet sterilizer, and a water supply device that automatically measures and sells purified water produced by the water purifier,
The water purifier is
A first polymer nonwoven fabric filter comprising a polymer nonwoven fabric;
A first high density activated carbon filter disposed downstream of the first polymerized nonwoven fabric filter;
A reverse osmosis membrane filter disposed downstream of the first high-density activated carbon filter;
A second high-density activated carbon filter disposed downstream of the reverse osmosis membrane filter;
An anion exchange filter disposed downstream of the second high-density activated carbon filter, provided with a sediment filter in the upper and lower portions of the cylindrical case, and filled with a fibrous or granular anion exchange resin between the two filters; Are connected in series ,
Nitrate nitrogen is removed with the anion filter and the pH is kept weakly alkaline with respect to drinking water.
A second polymerized nonwoven fabric filter is provided between the first high-density activated carbon filter and the reverse osmosis membrane filter,
A drinking water vending machine, wherein the second high-density activated carbon filter includes fossil coral and / or reef-building coral .   The drinking water vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the water purification device and the water supply device are connected by a water conduit, and the water purification device and the water supply device can be arranged separately.   The drinking water vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a communication device for exchanging information with an external computer. The drinking water vending machine according to claim 1 or 3, further comprising a prepaid card reader and / or a payment device using wireless communication.

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