JP2012057940A - Humidifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a humidifier that allows a vaporizing element to be easily taken out from a body.SOLUTION: A humidifier 1 comprises a water reservoir 40 that stores water, a rotary vaporizing element 41 that vaporizes water in the water reservoir 40, a drive 43 that rotates the vaporizing element 41, and a body 10 that accommodates the water reservoir 40, the vaporizing element 41, and the drive 43. The vaporizing element 41 has a first gear 411 on the outer circumference to which a rotating force from the drive 43 is transmitted. In the humidifier 1, the rotating shaft of the vaporizing element 41 does not need to be directly driven, and therefore, the vaporizing element does not need to have a mechanical shaft, and therefore, it is easy to take out the vaporizing element from the body 10 and to accommodate it in the body 10.

Description

  The present invention relates to a humidifier, and more particularly, to a humidifier that vaporizes by adding water to a predetermined member.

  In recent years, humidifiers that cause a rotating member to contain water and vaporize have become widespread. For example, a humidifier described in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-220390) has a vaporizing element in which a part of a vaporizing element whose outer shape is a disk shape is immersed in water in a water storage container and rotated. In addition, the water is vaporized and humidified.

  However, in the humidifier described in Patent Document 1, the rotating shaft of the motor that rotates the vaporizing element is inserted into the rotation center portion of the vaporizing element, and in order to remove the vaporizing element from the humidifier, the rotating shaft of the motor is used. It takes time and effort to separate from the vaporizing element, which reduces the maintainability of the vaporizing element.

  The subject of this invention is providing the humidifier which can take out a vaporization element from a main body easily.

  A humidifier according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a water storage container that stores water, a rotary vaporization member that vaporizes water in the water storage container, a drive unit that rotates the vaporization member, a water storage container, a vaporization member, and a drive unit. And a main body for storing. In the main body, the outer periphery of the vaporizing member is supported by two rotating bodies. The two rotating bodies are located below the rotation axis of the vaporizing member and are located on opposite sides of the vertical center line of the vaporizing member.

  In this humidifier, since the vaporizing member is held rotatably even without a mechanical rotating shaft, a flat shape without a protruding portion such as a shaft is allowed, the thickness dimension is reduced, and The vaporizing member can be easily taken out and stored in the main body.

  The humidifier which concerns on the 2nd viewpoint of this invention is a humidifier which concerns on a 1st viewpoint, Comprising: The vaporization member has the 1st gearwheel to which the rotational force from a drive part is transmitted to the outer periphery. One of the two rotating bodies is a drive gear that meshes with the first gear, and is provided in the drive unit.

  In this humidifier, since it is not necessary to directly rotate the rotating shaft of the vaporizing member, the vaporizing member does not need to have a mechanical rotating shaft, and the vaporizing member can be easily taken out from the main body and stored in the main body. . Further, since the torque required to rotate the vaporizing member is smaller than that directly rotating the rotating shaft of the vaporizing member, the load acting on the drive unit and the first gear is reduced, and the drive unit and the first gear are reduced. The service life is extended.

  The humidifier which concerns on the 3rd viewpoint of this invention is a humidifier which concerns on a 2nd viewpoint, Comprising: A drive gearwheel is located in the opposite side to the drawer side when a vaporization member is pulled out from a main body. In this humidifier, the drive gear does not get in the way when the vaporizing member is pulled out.

  The humidifier which concerns on the 4th viewpoint of this invention is a humidifier which concerns on a 1st viewpoint, Comprising: The vaporization member is shape | molded with the nonwoven fabric. In this humidifier, since the water absorption is high, more water can be absorbed and evaporated, and the humidification performance is improved.

  In the humidifier according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the vaporizing member is rotatably held even without a mechanical rotating shaft, a flat shape with no protruding portion such as a shaft is allowed, and the thickness dimension And the vaporizing member can be easily taken out from the main body and stored in the main body.

  In the humidifier according to the second aspect of the present invention, since it is not necessary to directly rotate the rotating shaft of the vaporizing member, the vaporizing member does not need to have a mechanical rotating shaft, and the vaporizing member is taken out from the main body, and the main body Easy storage. Further, since the torque required to rotate the vaporizing member is smaller than that directly rotating the rotating shaft of the vaporizing member, the load acting on the drive unit and the first gear is reduced, and the drive unit and the first gear are reduced. The service life is extended.

  In the humidifier according to the third aspect of the present invention, the drive gear does not get in the way when the vaporizing member is pulled out.

  In the humidifier which concerns on the 4th viewpoint of this invention, since water absorption is high, more water can be absorbed and it can evaporate and humidification performance improves.

The perspective view of the humidifier which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view of a dehumidification unit and a humidification unit. The perspective view of a dehumidification unit. The front view which looked at the dehumidification unit from the heater side. The perspective view of a humidification unit. The perspective view of the humidification unit seen from the downstream of the air flow of FIG. The exploded perspective view of a water wheel. The perspective view of the state in which the dehumidification unit and the humidification unit were combined.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The following embodiments are specific examples of the present invention and do not limit the technical scope of the present invention.

<Configuration of humidifier>
A humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention has a humidifying function, a dehumidifying function, and an air cleaning function. The humidifier is used as a humidifier during a humidifying operation, as a dehumidifier during a dehumidifying operation, and as an air cleaner during an air cleaning operation. Work as a machine. In the present embodiment, not only a single function but also a plurality of functions can be combined and operated simultaneously. For example, a combination of an air cleaning function and a dehumidifying function, a combination of an air cleaning function and a humidifying function, and a combination of a dehumidifying function and a humidifying function.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a humidifier according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, in the humidifier 1, a blower 2, a dehumidifying unit 3, a humidifying unit 4, an air cleaning unit 5 and a control unit 6 are housed in a main body 10. In the present embodiment, casters (not shown) are provided on the lower surface of the main body 10 (the surface facing the indoor floor surface) so that the user can easily move the humidifier 1.

  The blower 2 is located on the opposite side of the main body 10 from the air cleaning unit 5. When viewed from the air cleaning unit 5 side, the air cleaning unit 5, the dehumidifying unit 3, the humidifying unit 4, and the blower 2 are arranged in this order. Are lined up. When the blower 2 is operating, air is sucked in from the air purifying unit 5 side, and after passing through the dehumidifying unit 3, an air air path A that passes through the humidifying unit 4 and reaches the blower 2 is formed. The control part 6 is arrange | positioned at the upper part of the main body 10, and can control the air purifying part 5, the dehumidification unit 3, the humidification unit 4, and the air blower 2 separately.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the dehumidifying unit and the humidifying unit. In FIG. 2, the dehumidifying unit 3 is located on the near side, and the humidifying unit 4 is located on the far side. In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the water storage container 40, the vaporizing element 41, and the water wheel 42 that are components of the humidifying unit 4 protrude from the humidifying unit 4, but are arranged at predetermined positions of the humidifying unit 4 in the normal state.

<Dehumidification unit>
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the dehumidifying unit. In FIG. 3, the dehumidifying unit 3 includes an adsorption element 31, a heater 32, a second blower 33, a blower pipe 34, and a heat exchange unit 35. The adsorbing element 31 is a honeycomb structure, and is formed into a disk-like and porous shape by a material kneaded by mixing zeolite powder, a binder, and an expansion agent. The binder is selected from thermoplastic resins such as modified PPE, polypropylene, polystyrene, and ABS resin, for example. The expansion agent expands at the time of forming the honeycomb structure and forms innumerable bubbles. For this reason, the adsorption | suction element 31 has high adsorptivity with respect to a water | moisture content.

  The heater 32 is disposed at a location facing the downstream side surface of the adsorption element 31 with respect to the air flow path A, and is provided by a fan-shaped mounting member that can cover about one-sixth of the side surface of the adsorption element 31. It is attached.

  The second blower 33 is attached so as to protrude toward the downstream side of the adsorption element 31 with respect to the air flow path A from above the adsorption element 31. The heater 32 and the second blower 33 are connected by a first blower pipe 34a so that air can be circulated. The air generated by the operation of the second blower 33 reaches the heater 32 through the first blower pipe 34a and is heated there to become high-temperature air.

  The blower pipe 34 includes a first blower pipe 34a, a second blower pipe 34b, a third blower pipe 34c, and a fourth blower pipe 34d. The high-temperature air heated by the heater 32 travels along the thickness direction of the adsorption element 31 from the opposite side surface of the adsorption element 31 and emerges from the opposite side surface. The region through which the high-temperature air of the adsorption element 31 passes is heated by the high-temperature air and releases moisture to the high-temperature air.

  The high-temperature air that has passed through the adsorption element 31 becomes high-temperature and high-humidity air and enters the second blower pipe 34b. The 2nd ventilation pipe 34b is arrange | positioned so that the upstream side surface of the adsorption | suction element 31 may be covered with respect to the air flow path A so that the high temperature high humidity air which has passed the adsorption | suction element 31 can be collect | recovered completely. The second blower pipe 34b has a fan shape and covers about one-sixth of the side surface.

  The 3rd ventilation pipe 34c flows the high temperature, high humidity air which flows from the 2nd ventilation pipe 34b along the outer periphery of the radial direction outer side of the adsorption | suction element 31. FIG. The third blower pipe 34c is provided with a plurality of long holes 35a penetrating in the same direction as the air flow path A, and the air flowing through the air flow path A passes through the long holes 35a. Since the high-temperature and high-humidity air flowing through the third blower pipe 34c flows while contacting the wall surface of the long hole 35a, the air passing through the long hole 35a takes away heat from the high-temperature and high-humidity air. For this reason, the high-temperature and high-humidity air that has contacted the wall surface of the long hole 35a is cooled, and the wall surface of the long hole 35a is condensed. The condensed water passes through a predetermined outlet and enters a water storage container 40 described later.

  The fourth blower pipe 34 d communicates the third blower pipe 34 c and the second blower 33. The high-temperature and high-humidity air flowing through the third blower pipe 34c is sucked into the second blower 33 through the fourth blower pipe 34d after contacting the wall surfaces of the plurality of long holes 35a and deprived of heat and moisture.

  The long holes 35 a are provided so as to surround the outer side in the radial direction of the adsorption element 31, and the plurality of long holes 35 a form the heat exchange part 35. The dehumidifying unit 3 is formed with a flat region 3a in which the dimension in the thickness direction is set to substantially the same value, and the third blower pipe 34c and the heat exchange part 35 are included in the flat region 3a.

  FIG. 4 is a front view of the dehumidifying unit as viewed from the heater side. In FIG. 4, the dehumidifying unit 3 further includes a drive motor 36. The drive motor 36 has a pinion gear 361, and a driven gear 311 that meshes with the pinion gear 361 is provided on the outer periphery of the adsorption element 31. While the drive motor 36 is in operation, the adsorption element 31 is rotating, contacts the air passing through the air flow path A, adsorbs moisture, releases the moisture at a position facing the heater 32, and again Contact with air passing through the air flow path A. For this reason, the adsorption | suction element 31 can repeat adsorption | suction and discharge | release of a water | moisture content.

  In FIG. 1, a selection panel 11 for selecting an air cleaning operation, a dehumidifying operation, and a humidifying operation is provided on the uppermost surface of the main body 10 and connected to the control unit 6. The selection panel 11 includes a selection button 37 capable of selecting rotation and stop of the adsorption element 31. When the selection button 37 is turned off during the dehumidifying operation, the rotation of the adsorption element 31 is stopped and dehumidification is not performed. At this time, since the heater 32 and the second blower 33 are operating, the high-temperature air circulates in the blow pipe 34. For this reason, since the air which flows through the air flow path A is warmed when passing the heat exchange part 35, small-scale heating is performed. At this time, the humidification unit 4 is operated at the same time to perform the heating / humidification operation. In the present embodiment, the heating / humidifying operation mode is set in advance in the control unit 6 so that the heating / humidifying operation can be selected from the selection panel 11.

<Humidification unit>
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the humidifying unit. In FIG. 5, the humidification unit 4 includes a water storage container 40, a vaporizing element 41, a water wheel 42, and a drive unit 43. The water storage container 40 is a water source of moisture given to the air passing through the air flow path A, and is housed in the main body 10 so as to be detachable. When the water in the water storage container 40 is insufficient, the user pulls it out from the outlet of the main body 10 and replenishes the water. In the humidifier of the present embodiment, the water captured by the dehumidifying unit 3 is stored in the water storage container 40 to reduce the number of times of water replenishment.

  The vaporizing element 41 is a vaporizing member that is formed into a disk shape with a non-woven fabric and evaporates water sent from the water storage container 40 by rotating. The vaporizing element 41 has a first gear 411 on the outer periphery, and the first gear 411 is rotated by the drive unit 43. Since the vaporizing element 41 is disposed above the water level when the water storage container 40 is full, the vaporizing element 41 is not in direct contact with the water in the water storage container 40.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the humidification unit as viewed from the downstream side of the air flow of FIG. In FIG. 6, the water wheel 42 is rotatably supported by the water storage container 40, and pumps up water in the water storage container 40 and discharges it toward the vaporizing element 41. In order to reduce the dimension of the humidifying unit 4 in the thickness direction, the vaporizing element 41 and the water wheel 42 face each other in close proximity to each other with their rotation axes in parallel.

  Therefore, the water turbine 42 needs to pump water from the side surface and discharge it from the side surface toward the side surface of the vaporizing element 41. In the vicinity of the outer periphery of the side surface of the water wheel 42, a plurality of concave portions 421a having trapezoidal openings are provided. ing.

  FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the water wheel. In FIG. 7, the water wheel 42 includes a wheel 421, a wheel cover 422, and a second gear 423. The wheel 421 is formed with a plurality of recesses 421a that are recessed from one side surface toward the opposite side surface so as to draw a circle. And the wheel cover 422 is combined with the wheel 421 so that the opening side of the recessed part 421a may be covered.

  In the wheel cover 422, a trapezoidal hole 422a is formed so as to draw a circumference at a position facing the recess 421a of the wheel 421. Since the size of the hole 422a is about half of the opening of the recess 421a, when the wheel cover 422 is combined with the wheel 421, about half of the opening of the recess 421a is opened.

  The second gear 423 is a gear that meshes with the first gear 411 of the vaporizing element 41, and a rotation shaft 424 shared by the wheel 421, the wheel cover 422, and the second gear 423 is provided at the center of rotation. The second gear 423, the wheel cover 422, and the wheel 421 are sequentially stacked and combined with the rotation shaft 424 as the same axis.

  As the water wheel 42 rotates, the concave portions 421a sequentially pass through the water in the water storage container 40 and rise. When the recess 421a is submerged, water enters the recess 421a from the hole 422a, so that the interior of the recess 421a coming out of the water is filled with water.

  As the concave portion 421a approaches the uppermost position, water in the concave portion 421a flows out from the hole 422a, and almost all of the water flows out when passing through the uppermost position. Since some momentum is added by gravity when water flows out, the water flows out toward the side surface of the vaporizing element 41 adjacent to the concave portion 421a.

  In FIG. 6, the rotating shaft 424 is rotatably supported by the bearing 40 a of the water storage container 40, and the height from the bottom surface of the water storage container 40 to the shaft core of the bearing 40 a is the water storage capacity when the water turbine 42 is disposed. Even when the container 40 is at the lowest water level, the recess 421a at the lowest position of the water wheel 42 is set to be submerged.

  Further, since the upper half of the bearing 40 a is open, when the water storage container 40 is pulled out from the main body 10, the user can take out the water wheel 42 from the water storage container 40 and clean it.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a state in which the dehumidifying unit and the humidifying unit are combined. In FIG. 8, the humidifying unit 4 is disposed so as to overlap below the second blower 33 of the dehumidifying unit 3. The vaporizing element 41 of the humidifying unit 4 faces the adsorption element 31 of the dehumidifying unit 3 and the heat exchange unit 35 that is not visible in FIG. The water turbine 42 is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the vaporizing element 41 and the heat exchange unit 35.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the water storage container 40 can be taken out from the drawer opening 12 of the main body 10 by pulling out the pull-out type first door 10a, and the vaporizing element 41 opens the rotary type second door 10b. Thus, it can be taken out from the take-out port 13 of the main body 10. As a result, the user can take out the water storage container 40, replenish water, and wash the water wheel 42, and take out the vaporizing element 41 and replace it.

  In addition, the excess and deficiency of the water in the water storage container 40 can be visually confirmed from the window part 10c provided in the 1st door 10a. In this embodiment, the window part 10c is a rectangular hole, and the convex part 40c (refer FIG. 6) previously formed in the water storage container 40 is fitting to this hole. The user can see the water level reflected on the convex part 40c through the hole of the window part 10c.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the vaporizing element 41 is formed in a shape that does not project the rotating shaft in order to facilitate removal from the main body 10. Therefore, the vaporizing element 41 is supported by the first gear 411 meshing with the drive gear 431 and the second gear 423. In order for the first gear 411 to maintain a stable posture, the drive gear 431 and the second gear 423 are positioned below the rotation axis of the first gear 411 and are relative to the vertical center line of the vaporizing element 41. They are located on opposite sides. For this reason, even if the vaporizing element 41 is not supported by the shaft, the vaporizing element 41 can rotate stably. When the vaporizing element 41 is taken out from the main body 10, there is no protruding shaft, so that it can be easily taken out without being caught inside the main body 10. .

  When the water storage container 40 is taken out from the main body 10, it becomes a problem how to treat the water falling from the vaporizing element 41. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, a water receiving container 44 is provided below the vaporizing element 41. The water receiving container 44 is supported slidably below the support frame 4b, and on the vaporizing element 41 side with respect to the swaying shaft 44b which is the center of swaying, a spout for flowing water downward. 44a, and on the drive unit 43 side with respect to the swing shaft 44b, there is a spare container 44c for temporarily storing water.

  When the vaporizing element 41 is in the normal position, the water receiving container 44 flows water into the water storage container 40 with the spout 44a facing downward, and when the vaporizing element 41 is taken out, the spout 44a is directed upward. Thus, the water falling from the vaporizing element 41 is stored in the spare container 44c.

<Features>
(1)
In the humidifier 1, the vaporizing element 41 is separated from the water surface of the water storage container 40, and if the operation of the water wheel 42 is stopped, water does not move to the vaporizing element 41, so that humidification can be reliably stopped.
Is called.

(2)
In the humidifier 1, a plurality of recesses 421 a are provided on the side surface of the water wheel 42, and the side surface of the water wheel 42 and the side surface of the vaporizing element 41 are close to each other and thus are small in the thickness direction. Moreover, since the vaporizing element 41 is rotatably accommodated in the main body 10 and the driving unit 43 rotates the water wheel 42 and the vaporizing element 41 simultaneously, the parts are shared and the number of parts is reduced.

(3)
In the humidifier 1, the rotation center of the drive gear 431 and the second gear 423 is positioned below the rotation center of the first gear 411, and the drive gear 431 and the second gear 423 are on the vertical center line of the first gear 411. They are located on opposite sides of each other. For this reason, the vaporizing element 41 is rotatably held even if the rotating shaft is not supported, has a flat shape with no protruding portion such as a shaft, and has a small thickness dimension.

(4)
In the humidifier 1, since the water wheel 42 is taken out together with the water storage container 40 when the water storage container 40 is taken out from the main body 10, the water storage container 40 and the water wheel 42 can be easily cleaned. In addition, since the outlet 13 when the vaporizing element 41 is taken out from the main body 10 and the outlet 12 when the water storage container 40 and the water wheel 42 are taken out from the main body 10 are different, only the vaporizing element 41 can be taken out. Maintenance work such as cleaning and replacement is easy.

(5)
In the humidifier 1, the water receiving member 44 is slidably disposed between the water storage container 40 and the vaporizing element 41 and receives water falling from the vaporizing element 41. The spout 44 a of the water receiving member 44 is tilted downward when the water storage container 40 is stored in the main body 10, and tilted upward when the water storage container 40 is removed from the main body 10. For this reason, even if water drops from the vaporizing element 41 after the water storage container 40 is taken out, the water does not fall into the main body, so that the main body does not get wet and become dirty.

<Other embodiments>
As a mechanism for transferring water from the turbine to the vaporizing element other than that described in the above-described embodiment, a bucket for pumping water is provided on the side surface of the turbine wheel to receive water pumped up on the side surface of the vaporizing element. A mechanism of providing a bucket may be used.

  Moreover, the mechanism of sticking the water absorption member which absorbs water to the outer periphery of a water wheel and a vaporization element, and making the surface contact of the outer periphery of a water wheel and the outer periphery of a vaporization element may be sufficient.

  On the other hand, as a method that does not employ a water wheel, a mechanism may be used in which a bucket for pumping is hung from the vaporizing element, and the bucket pumps water from the water storage container and applies water to the vaporizing element while the vaporizing element rotates once.

  Moreover, you may employ | adopt the pump which draws in the water in a water storage container and discharges water toward a vaporization element. For example, there are a gear pump, an impeller pump, an Archimedes pump, a siphon pump, and the like.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when the humidification operation is stopped, the humidification action is surely stopped, and the natural consumption of water is suppressed. For this reason, since a water storage container is reduced in size and a humidifier becomes small, it is useful as a multifunctional humidifier on a table.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Humidifier 10 Main body 40 Water storage container 41 Vaporization element (vaporization member)
43 Drive 411 First Gear 423 Second Gear 431 Drive Gear

JP 2006-220390 A

Claims (4)

A water storage container (40) for storing water;
A rotary vaporizing member (41) for vaporizing water in the water storage container (40);
A drive unit (43) for rotating the vaporizing member (41);
A main body (10) for housing the water storage container (40), the vaporizing member (41) and the drive unit (43);
With
In the main body (10), the outer periphery of the vaporizing member (41) is supported by two rotating bodies (423, 431),
The two rotating bodies (423, 431) are located below the rotation axis of the vaporizing member (41) and located on opposite sides of the vertical center line of the vaporizing member (41). ,
Humidifier (1). The vaporizing member (41) has a first gear (411) on the outer periphery to which the rotational force from the drive unit (43) is transmitted,
One of the two rotating bodies (423, 431) is a drive gear (431) that meshes with the first gear (411), and is provided in the drive unit (43).
The humidifier (1) according to claim 1. The drive gear (431) is located on the opposite side to the pull-out side when the vaporizing member (41) is pulled out from the main body (10).
The humidifier (1) according to claim 2. The vaporizing member (41) is formed of a nonwoven fabric.
The humidifier (1) according to claim 1.

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