JP3199578B2 - Switching cock for faucet - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a faucet switching cock which is attached to, for example, a water faucet and discharges water supplied from the water faucet as it is or supplies the water to a water purifier.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, the above-mentioned faucet switching cock is directly attached to a water tap, and by operating a handle exposed to the outside, water supplied from the water tap is discharged as it is, or in a shower form. Or A switching valve is connected to the handle, and by operating the handle, the position of the switching valve, that is, the flow path of water is switched, and the state of water discharged from the faucet changes.

More specifically, the flow path of the water which is switched in response to the operation of the handle is switched according to the position of a groove formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical switching valve. That is, by operating the handle, the groove connects the inflow port into which the water flows from the faucet and any one of the plurality of discharge ports from which the water is discharged. Some switching cocks mounted on a mixing tap capable of discharging water and hot water are provided with a hot water supply prevention device. In this hot water supply prevention device, the hot water discharged from the faucet is higher than a predetermined temperature (hot water).
In this case, the discharge port of the switching cock communicating with the water purifier is closed to prevent hot water from flowing into the water purifier. The hot water supply prevention device prevents the water purifier from being damaged by the hot water. The hot water supply prevention device is operated by a coil spring made of a shape memory alloy. In other words, when hot water flows into the cock, the coil spring expands, and the discharge port communicating with the water purifier is closed by the valve attached to the spring.

[0004]

However, the switching cock for faucet has the following problems. (1) When a plurality of discharge ports are provided, the shape of the groove of the valve becomes complicated or the width of the groove becomes narrow, so that the discharge amount of water may decrease.

(2) In order to secure a predetermined width of the groove in a state where a plurality of discharge ports are provided, it is conceivable to make the valve thicker. However, in this case, the size of the switching cock is increased by an amount corresponding to an increase in the thickness of the switching valve.

(3) It is difficult to adjust a coil spring constituting the hot water supply prevention device. That is, since the discharge port is closed via the valve element by the spring force, it is difficult to finely adjust the spring force. Further, the shape memory alloy constituting the coil spring takes a long time to be deformed, and the discharge port cannot be quickly closed even if hot water at a predetermined temperature or more flows in.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and a first object of the present invention is to prevent a decrease in the amount of water discharged without increasing the size of a switching valve. An object of the present invention is to provide a faucet switching cock.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a faucet switching cock which can quickly close a discharge port when hot water having a temperature equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature flows in and prevent the discharge of the water from the discharge port.

[0009]

To achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an inflow port which is connected to a water faucet and in which water discharged from the water faucet flows, and which flows in from the water faucet. A plurality of discharge ports for discharging water to the outside, a switching valve for appropriately communicating between the inflow port and any of the discharge ports , a source water discharge position and a purified water discharge position
In faucet for switching cock and a switching handle which is switched operated in two positions with, with the rotation of the switching handle
The switching valve that moves and rotates has a groove formed on the outer peripheral surface and a hollow portion formed inside, and the groove or the hollow portion communicates the inflow port with one of the discharge ports. Is the gist.

[0010] The gist of the present invention is that a constant flow rate means is provided between the switching valve and the discharge port to make the flow rate of water discharged from the discharge port constant.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, when water having a predetermined temperature or more flows from the inflow port to the discharge valve, the discharge port is closed between the switching valve and the discharge port to prevent discharge of the inflowing water. The gist is that a water discharge prevention means is provided.

The gist of the present invention is that the hot water discharge prevention means comprises a thermowax that expands or contracts based on a temperature change and a valve body that closes a discharge port.

[0013]

According to the first aspect of the invention, when water flows in from the inflow port, the water is discharged from the discharge port through the groove or the hollow portion of the switching valve. That is, in the present invention, since the flow path of the water is constituted by the groove and the hollow portion, the size of the switching valve can be reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the flow rate of water discharged from the discharge port is made constant by the constant flow rate means. Thereby, for example, when the water purifier is connected to the discharge port, the amount of water flowing to the water purifier can be constant. That is, since the water pressure applied to the water purifier can be kept constant, the load on the water purifier can be reduced.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, when the temperature of the water flowing in from the inflow port is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, the discharge port is closed by the hot water discharge prevention means to prevent discharge of the inflow water. You. Thus, for example, when the water purifier is connected to the discharge port, hot water can be prevented from flowing through the water purifier, and damage to the water purifier due to the hot water can be prevented.

According to the present invention, when the temperature of the water flowing from the inflow port is equal to or higher than the predetermined temperature, the thermowax is expanded, and the valve body is moved to the inflow port with the expansion. . That is, the inflow port is closed by the valve element. When water having a temperature lower than the predetermined temperature is supplied, the thermowax contracts, and the closing of the inflow port by the valve body is released.

The expansion operation of the thermowax is quicker than that of a coil spring made of a shape memory alloy, and there is no need to adjust the spring force or the like. As a result, it is possible to easily mount the switching cock on the switching cock and to reliably prevent water having a predetermined temperature or higher from being discharged from the discharge port.

[0018]

【Example】

(First Embodiment) A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the tap 1 has two handles, a handle C for water and a handle H for hot water. By opening the water handle C, the water faucet 1
Discharges water. Further, when the handle H for hot water is opened, hot water is discharged from the water tap 1.
By appropriately opening both handles C and H, the temperature of the hot water discharged from the water tap 1 can be adjusted.

A faucet switching cock (hereinafter referred to as a switching cock) 2 is mounted on the water tap 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the inflow port 3 is formed on the upper surface of a main case 5 that forms the switching cock 2. The fastening cap 6 connects the water tap 1 to the main case 5. The first discharge port 7 is formed on the lower surface of the main case 5 on the same axis as the inflow port 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the second discharge port 8 and the purified water inflow port 29 are formed on the front (upper part in FIG. 2) of the main case 5 so as to be adjacent to each other.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG.
Communicates between the second discharge port 8 and the water inlet 11 of the water purifier 10. The discharge pipe 12 communicates between the discharge port 13 of the water purifier 10 and the purified water inflow port 29.

The switching valve chamber 14 is provided with the inflow port 3
The main case 5 is formed so as to be orthogonal to the axis of the first discharge port 7 and to communicate with both ports 7 and 8. The purified water inflow port 29 and the switching valve housing chamber 14 communicate with each other through a communication passage 38. A check valve 39 that allows only the flow of water from the purified water inflow port 29 to the switching valve housing chamber 14 is provided between the purified water inflow port 29 and the communication passage 38. As shown in FIG. 7, the cross-sectional shape of the purified water inflow port 29 on the switching valve housing chamber 14 side is formed in a long hole shape.

The thermo-element housing chamber 15 is formed on the main case 5 coaxially with the second discharge port 8 and communicates with the second discharge port 8. The switching valve accommodating chamber 14 and the thermo-element accommodating chamber 15 communicate with each other via a communication passage 18. As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 6, the relief valve housing chamber 22 is formed below the thermoelement housing chamber 15. The thermo-element housing chamber 15 and the relief valve housing chamber 22 communicate with each other via the relief port 16. The drain port 17 is formed below the relief valve housing 22.

A relief valve 21 composed of a coil spring 19 and a ball 20 is housed in a relief valve housing chamber 22. The ball 20 is constantly urged toward the relief port 16 by the elastic force of the coil spring 19, and normally closes the relief port 16 to maintain the communication between the thermo-element housing chamber 15 and the relief valve housing chamber 22 in a non-communicating state. I have.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 8, the switching valve 23 is accommodated in the switching valve accommodating chamber 14. The switching valve 23 is formed in a tubular shape with one end face closed and the other end face open. The groove 24 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the switching valve 23, and a part thereof is interrupted. The valve inflow port 25 is formed at a position where the groove 24 is interrupted, and communicates with the hollow portion 26. An orifice 27 as a constant flow means is mounted on the other end surface of the switching valve 23. Accordingly, the thermo-element housing chamber 15 and the switching valve 2
3 communicates with the hollow portion 26 via the communication passage 18 and the orifice 27.

The switching handle 28 has two positions: a source water discharge position shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, and a purified water discharge position shown in FIGS.
The position is switched. That is, the rotation of the switching handle 28 is restricted by a stopper (not shown), and the rotation amount is about 90 °. The switching valve 23 has a switching handle 28
And rotates in the switching valve accommodating chamber 14 in conjunction with the rotation of the switching handle 28.

When the switching handle 28 is located at the source water discharge position, one end of the groove 24 of the switching valve 23 is held at a position facing the inflow port 3 of the main case 5, and the other end of the groove 24. The side is held at a position facing the first discharge port 7 of the main case 5. Further, when the position of the switching handle 28 is at the purified water discharge position, the valve inflow port 3 of the switching valve 23 is held at a position facing the inflow port 3 of the main case 5. Further, when the switching handle 28 is at the position of the purified water discharge port, the groove 24 communicates between the purified water inflow port 29 and the first discharge port 7.

The thermo-element housing chamber 15 houses a thermo-element 30. As shown in FIGS. 2, 4 and 9, the distal end of the case 31 forming the thermoelement 30 has substantially the same diameter as the diameter of the second discharge port 8. The diaphragm 32 is housed in the case 31. The guide 33 closes the opening of the case 31 to prevent the diaphragm 32 from jumping out of the case 31, and supports the semi-fluid 34 and the piston 35. The thermo wax 36 is sealed between the case 31 and the diaphragm 32.

As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG.
Are engaged with the back surface of the main case 5. The coil spring 37 is housed in the thermo-element housing chamber 15 and always urges the thermo-element 30 backward (downward in the figure).

The thermowax 36 changes into a solid or liquid as the expansion amount changes based on the temperature. FIG.
0 is a graph showing the characteristics of the thermowax 36. The horizontal axis is the temperature (° C.), and the vertical axis is the expansion amount (mm) of the thermowax 36 with respect to the temperature. A part of the figure shows a region where the thermowax 36 expands in a solid state, B part shows a region where the thermowax 36 expands while changing from a solid to a liquid, and C part shows a state where the thermowax 36 is in a liquid state. Indicates the region when expanding. As is clear from this graph, the amount of expansion of the thermowax 36 increases as the temperature rises. When the thermowax 36 expands, the diaphragm 32 is pressed, and the semi-fluid 34 and the piston 35 are pushed upward in FIGS. 2 and 4. Therefore, the extension amount of the piston 35 is
6 increases as the temperature increases. In this embodiment, the amount of extension of the piston 35 in the area of the portion A is almost 0 mm (the temperature is less than 40 ° C.) (the thermowax 36 expands but the coil spring 37 cannot contract). Further, the extension amount of the piston 35 in the region of the part B is approximately 0 to 3 mm.
(Temperature is 40 ° C. to 47 ° C.). The extension amount of the piston 35 in the region of the portion C is 3 mm or more. In this example,
In order to close the second discharge port 8 with the thermoelement 30, the piston 35 needs to be 3.5 mm or more. That is, 50 ° C.
When the above hot water flows, the second discharge port 8 is closed by the thermoelement 30.

Next, the operation of the faucet switching cock 2 configured as described above will be described. First, the operation at the time of discharging the source water will be described. The position of the switching handle 28 is held at the source water discharge position shown in FIGS. In this state, when the water handle C is opened and the water flows into the main case 5 from the inflow port 3, the water is guided to the groove 24 of the switching valve 23, and the water is guided from the first discharge port 7 to the outside. Is discharged. When discharging the hot water, the position of the switching handle 28 is held in the same manner as described above, and the hot water handle H is opened. As a result, the hot water flows into the main case 5 from the inflow port 3, is guided by the groove 24 of the switching valve 23, and is discharged from the first discharge port 7 to the outside. At this time,
When the temperature of the discharged hot water is high, the desired temperature of the hot water can be obtained by appropriately opening both handles H and C of the hot water handle H and the water handle C.

Next, the operation at the time of discharging purified water will be described. When discharging purified water, the position of the switching handle 28 is held at the purified water position shown in FIGS. In this state, when the water handle C is opened and the water flows into the main case 5 from the inflow port 3, the water flows into the hollow portion 26 from the valve inflow port 25 of the switching valve 23. Then, the water is decompressed by the orifice 27 and then flows through the communication passage 18 into the thermo-element housing chamber 15. The water flowing into the thermo-element housing chamber 15 is discharged from the second discharge port 8 to the outside of the main case 5. That is, water flows from the second discharge port 8 to the water inlet pipe 9 and flows into the water purifier 10 from the water inlet 11.

After the water is purified by the water purifier 10, the water is discharged from the discharge port 13 to the discharge pipe 12. The water flowing through the discharge pipe 12 flows into the main case 5 again from the purified water inflow port 29 and flows to the communication passage 38 side. At this time, since the groove 24 of the switching valve 23 communicates between the communication path 38 and the first discharge port 7, the purified water is guided by the groove 24 to the outside from the first discharge port 7. Is discharged.

Further, although the position of the switching handle 28 is maintained at the position shown in FIGS.
When hot water flows from the water purifier, the hot water is discharged from the drain port 17 to the outside without flowing into the water purifier 10. This will be described in more detail.
When hot water flows into the thermo-element, the wax of the thermo-element 30 expands, and the piston 35 is extended with the expansion. Thereby, the case 31 is moved to the second discharge port 8 side, and the end of the case 31 closes the second discharge port 8.

As a result, the pressure in the thermo-element housing chamber 15 increases, and the pressure increases.
Is moved against the elastic force of the coil spring 19 to open the communication passage 18. Therefore, the hot water in the thermo-element housing chamber 15 passes through the communication passage 18, flows toward the relief valve housing chamber 22, and is discharged from the drain port 17 to the outside.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained by configuring the faucet switching cock 2. (1) A groove 24 and a hollow portion 26 serving as a water flow path were formed in a switching valve 23 for switching a water flow path. That is, in the present embodiment, unlike the related art, the water flow path is formed by using the inside of the switching valve 23 in addition to the outer peripheral surface of the switching valve 23.

As a result, the shape of the groove 24 can be simplified, and the width of the groove 24 can be increased. Thus, it is possible to prevent the discharge amount of water from being reduced, and it is possible to reduce the size of the faucet switching cock 2.

(2) By providing the orifice 27 between the hollow portion 26 of the switching valve 23 and the thermo-element housing chamber 15, the amount of water discharged from the second discharge port 8 to the water purifier 10 can be reduced. Can be constant. Thereby, the water pressure applied to the water purifier 10 can be made constant, and a high water pressure can be prevented from being applied to the water purifier 10, so that the water purifier 10 can be prevented from being damaged.

(3) A device for preventing the flow of hot water toward the water purifier 10 is constituted by using a thermowax 36 which expands or contracts based on a temperature change. The expansion operation of the thermowax 36 is faster than that of a coil spring made of a shape memory alloy, and does not require adjustment of a spring force or the like. As a result, while being ready to be attached to the switching cock 2,
Hot water can be reliably prevented from flowing through the water purifier 10.

(4) The hole shape of the purified water inflow port 29 on the side of the switching valve accommodating chamber 14 is elongated. Thereby, the flow passage area of the purified water inflow port 29 can be increased, and the discharge amount of the purified water can be increased.

(Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, the same members as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and different points from the first embodiment will be described.

In the first embodiment, the position of the switching handle 28 can be switched between the two positions of the source water discharge position and the purified water discharge position. In this embodiment, the position of the switching handle 28 is changed to the two positions of the first embodiment. In addition to the above, as shown in FIGS. In this embodiment, the check valve 39 is not provided in the purified water inflow port 29.

When the switching handle 28 is in the backwash position, the groove 24 of the switching valve 23 communicates between the inflow port 3 and the purified water inflow port 29 and the valve inflow port 3 is connected to the main case 5. It is held at a position facing the first discharge port 7. That is, in this embodiment, the switching handle 28 can be rotated by 180 °.

When water or hot water is discharged from the water tap 1 when the switching handle 28 is at the source water discharge position or the purified water discharge position, the source water or the purified water is supplied from the inflow port 3 as in the first embodiment. The discharged water is discharged. When the switching handle 28 is at the backwash position, the water flowing from the inflow port 3 flows through the groove 24 of the switching valve 23 and is discharged from the purified water inflow port 29 to the water purifier 10 through the discharge pipe 12. . Then, the water flows backward through the water purifier 10 and is discharged from the water inlet 11 of the water purifier 10 to the water inlet pipe 9. At this time,
When the water flows back through the water purifier 10, the filter (not shown) in the water purifier 10 is washed, and the filtering function is improved.

The water flowing through the water inlet pipe 9 flows from the second discharge port 8 into the thermo-element housing chamber 15.
Then, the water flows from the orifice 27 through the communication passage 18 into the hollow portion 26 of the switching valve 23, and is discharged from the first discharge port 7 through the valve inflow port 25 to the outside.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the discharge of the source water, the discharge of the purified water, and the cleaning of the water purifier 10 can be performed by setting the rotation amount of the switching handle 28 to about 180 °. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be configured as follows, for example, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

(1) As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the first
The shower nozzle 51 is connected to the main case 5 at a position opposite to the discharge port 7 of FIG. Metal mesh 52 is cylindrical body 5
3 housed. The cylinder 53 moves up and down with respect to the body 58 by operating the lever 54. The body 58 has a large number of discharge holes 55 that are larger than the eyes of the metal mesh 52. The engagement protrusion 56 is formed on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical body 53. When the cylinder 53 is held at the upper position, the engagement protrusion 56 engages with the engagement body 57 communicating with the first discharge port 7. When the cylinder 53 is held at the lower position, the engagement between the engagement protrusion 56 and the engagement body 57 is released.

As shown in FIG. 15, when the cylindrical body 53 is held at the upper position and the engagement projection 56 and the engagement body 57 are engaged, water (or hot water) is supplied from the first discharge port 7. Is discharged, the water is discharged from the metal mesh 52 to the outside through the space between the engagement protrusion 56 and the engagement body 57. Therefore, the state of the water at this time becomes a foam.

As shown in FIG. 14, when the cylindrical body 53 is held at the upper position and the engagement between the engagement projection 56 and the engagement body 57 is released, the water is discharged from the first discharge port 7. When the hot water (or hot water) is discharged, the water flows out of the cylindrical body 53 from the main case 5 and the port 59 opened on the side surface of the body 58. Then, the water is supplied to the discharge hole 5 of the body 58.
5 to the outside. Accordingly, the state of the water at this time becomes a shower state.

As described above, by connecting the shower nozzle 51 to the faucet switching cock 2, the source water and the purified water discharged from the first discharge port 7 can be switched between two types of discharge states.

[0051]

As described above in detail, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the water flow path is formed by the groove formed on the outer peripheral surface of the switching valve and the hollow portion formed inside the switching valve. Configured. As a result, it is possible to prevent a decrease in the water discharge amount without increasing the size of the switching valve.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the flow rate of the water discharged from the discharge port can be made constant by the constant flow rate means, for example, when the water purifier is connected to the discharge port, the water flows into the water purifier. The amount of water can be kept constant, and the load on the water purifier can be reduced.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the discharge of water having a predetermined temperature or higher. Thus, for example, when the water purifier is connected to the discharge port, hot water can be prevented from flowing through the water purifier, and damage to the water purifier due to the hot water can be prevented.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the discharge port is closed using thermowax, the discharge port can be quickly and reliably closed when water of a predetermined temperature or more flows in. The water can be prevented from being discharged.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view around a water tap according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view of the switching cock for faucet at the time of discharge of source water.

FIG. 3 is a front cross-sectional view of the switching cock for faucet when discharging the source water.

FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view of the faucet switching cock at the time of discharging purified water.

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of the faucet switching cock at the time of discharging purified water.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line XX of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line YY of FIG. 2;

FIG. 8A is a perspective view of a switching valve. (B) is sectional drawing of a switching valve.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a thermoelement.

FIG. 10 is a graph showing characteristics of a thermoelement.

FIG. 11 is a plan cross-sectional view of the faucet switching cock in a state where a thermo-element closes a second discharge port.

FIG. 12 is a plan sectional view of a faucet switching cock according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a front sectional view of a faucet switching cock according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of another example of a faucet switching cock equipped with a shower nozzle (when discharging water in a foam state).

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of another example of a faucet switching cock equipped with a shower nozzle (when discharging water in a shower state).

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... water tap, ... switching cock for faucet, 3 ... inflow port,
7 ... first discharge port, 8 ... second discharge port, 23 ...
Switching valve, 24 groove, 26 hollow part, 27 orifice as constant flow rate means, 30 thermo element constituting hot water discharge prevention means, 31 case as valve body, 3
6. A switching cock for a faucet according to claim 3, wherein the switching cock comprises a thermo-wax, a coil spring and a valve constituting hot water discharge prevention means.

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. An inflow port connected to a water tap for flowing water discharged from the water tap, a plurality of discharge ports for discharging water flowing from the water tap to the outside, and one of the inflow ports. A switching valve for appropriately communicating with the discharge port, and two positions of a source water discharge position and a purified water discharge position
A switching cock for a faucet, comprising a switching handle that is switched to a switching valve, wherein a switching valve that rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the switching handle includes a groove formed on an outer peripheral surface and a hollow portion formed inside. A switching cock for a faucet having a groove or a hollow portion for communicating the inflow port with any of the discharge ports. 2. The faucet switching cock according to claim 1, wherein a constant flow rate means for keeping the flow rate of water discharged from the discharge port constant is provided between the switching valve and the discharge port. 3. A hot water discharge prevention means is provided between the switching valve and the discharge port to close the discharge port and prevent discharge of the inflow water when water having a predetermined temperature or more flows from the inflow port. The switching cock for a faucet according to claim 1, wherein the switching cock is provided. 4. The faucet switching cock according to claim 3, wherein said hot water discharge prevention means comprises a thermowax that expands or contracts based on a temperature change and a valve body that closes a discharge port.