JP3207459B2 - Detergent charging device for bathtub cleaning device and method of detecting detergent charging operation state in the device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a detergent feeding device for feeding a detergent to a predetermined feeding portion when washing a bathtub, and a method of detecting a detergent feeding operation state in the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 63-71869 is known as an apparatus for automatically cleaning a bathtub. In this apparatus, a washing nozzle for spraying a washing liquid containing a detergent and a water spray nozzle for spraying water such as tap water are provided on a lid of a bathtub. When the bathtub is washed, the washing liquid is pumped from the detergent tank by a washing nozzle. And spraying it into a bathtub to remove dirt.After that, water is supplied from a water supply source to a water spray nozzle and sprayed into the bathtub, and the dirt component of the bathtub dropped by the washing liquid is removed. The washing liquid is washed away and discharged from a drain hole.

[0003]

However, in this conventional apparatus, the cleaning liquid injected from the cleaning nozzle is not used repeatedly, but flows out of the drain hole together with the water to be injected next. There was no waste on.

[0004] The applicant of the present invention has succeeded in developing a cleaning apparatus capable of solving these problems through repeated trial production research. This development device arranges a cleaning nozzle toward the inner wall surface of the bathtub, collects the cleaning liquid injected from the cleaning nozzle from the bottom side of the bathtub, and collects the cleaning liquid with a circulation pump of a reheating circulation pipe line connected to the bathtub. It is configured to circulate and supply to the washing nozzle via the washing liquid circulation pipe passing through the reheating heat exchanger, and further provided in this washing liquid circulation pipe is a detergent supply device incorporating a detergent tank and an on-off valve for introducing the detergent. It is a thing. According to this development device, at the start of cleaning, with the bath tub empty, the on-off valve for detergent introduction is opened, detergent is introduced from the detergent tank into the washing solution circulation line, and the washing solution circulation line is The water is sent to the bathtub together with the detergent, and a predetermined amount of the cleaning liquid (mixture of water and detergent) is stored on the bottom of the bathtub. Then, the pump is started, and the cleaning liquid stored in the bathtub is heated while being heated by the heat exchanger. The cleaning liquid is supplied to the cleaning nozzle, and the heated cleaning liquid is circulated and sprayed from the cleaning nozzle toward the inner wall surface of the bathtub.

However, when the detergent is introduced from the detergent tank into the washing liquid circulation line, when the detergent introduction operation is performed by opening the detergent introduction opening / closing valve, it is determined whether the detergent is normally introduced or not. There is a disadvantage that it is not possible to automatically detect whether the tank is sufficiently filled with the detergent, and furthermore, whether the detergent is running low or not. For this reason, there is a problem that the bath tub cleaning operation is performed without the detergent being noticed that the detergent tank is empty. Is filled with air, and even if the on-off valve for detergent introduction is opened for a predetermined time and the detergent is dropped into the conduit leading to the introduction part, the detergent does not reach the introduction part. In addition, there has been a problem that the cleaning operation is performed with a cleaning solution containing only detergent and no water.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to make the detergent tank empty.
The detergent tank is full of detergent or detergent
Is running low or the detergent is
Or the situation at the time of detergent input operation such as
It is an object of the present invention to provide a bath tub cleaning detergent charging device capable of performing bath tub cleaning under a situation where the detergent charging is performed without any trouble, and a method of detecting a detergent charging operation state in the device.

[0007]

The present invention is configured as follows to achieve the above object. That is, the detergent introduction device of the present invention, a detergent tank containing a detergent,
A piston drive pump for sucking the detergent in the detergent tank and supplying the detergent to a portion for introducing the detergent in the bathtub cleaning device, wherein the detergent tank is provided with a level sensor for detecting a liquid level of the detergent, A detergent detection sensor for detecting the detergent is provided on a path from the tank to the detergent introduction part, and further, a piston drive pump is provided .
The detection signal of the level sensor detected at the time of detergent injection operation.
Level and the detection signal of the detergent detection sensor.
The sensor detects a liquid level below the preset lower limit level.
When the detergent detection sensor detects no detergent, the detergent tank
Is judged to be empty, and the level sensor
Also detects the upper liquid level and the detergent detection sensor detects the presence of detergent
Is judged to be in the normal operation state of detergent input,
Sensor detects liquid level below the lower limit level and detects detergent
Immediately before the detergent runs out when the sensor detects the presence of detergent
Is determined, and predetermined according to the results of these determinations
Command / control section that outputs the control signal
The method for detecting the state of detergent introduction of the present invention is characterized in that the detergent is sucked from a detergent tank by a piston drive pump, and the sucked detergent is injected into the inlet from the piston drive pump. During the operation of introducing the detergent, the level sensor detects the liquid level of the detergent in the detergent tank, and the detergent is detected by the detergent detection sensor in a path from the detergent tank to the detergent introduction section. Based on the detection signal of the detergent detection sensor,
The liquid level level below the lower limit level set in advance by the level sensor
When the detergent detection sensor detects the absence of detergent
Determines that the detergent tank is empty and sets the level sensor to the lower limit.
Detergent detection sensor detects liquid level higher than level and detergent
When the presence is detected, it is determined that the detergent is in a steady operation state.
And the level sensor detects the liquid level below the lower limit level.
Detergent detection sensor is state and judged immediately before the detergent expires when it detects the presence of detergent, the detergent tank is configured as characterized in that the notification of the detergent replenishment when just before the cut is empty when the detergent .

[0008]

In the present invention having the above-described structure, when the piston drive pump is driven, the detergent is sucked into the piston drive pump from the detergent tank, and the sucked detergent is supplied to a predetermined detergent charging section. At the time of the introduction of the detergent, the level of the detergent in the detergent tank is detected by a level sensor, and the presence or absence of the detergent is detected by a detergent detection sensor in a path from the detergent tank to the detergent introduction portion. Based on the detection signal of this level sensor and the detection signal of the detergent detection sensor, when the piston drive pump is operated, the liquid level in the detergent tank is higher than the lower limit level,
When the detergent detection sensor detects the detergent, it is determined that the detergent is being supplied in a steady state. When the liquid level in the detergent tank is lower than the lower limit level and the detergent detection sensor is detecting the detergent, it is determined that the detergent is in a state immediately before the detergent runs out. Further, when the liquid level of the detergent in the detergent tank becomes lower than the lower limit level and the detergent detection sensor cannot detect the detergent, it is determined that the detergent in the detergent tank is empty. Then, when the detergent tank is empty and immediately before the detergent runs out, for example, a display of a remote controller or the like is notified of detergent replenishment.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows a main configuration of a detergent charging device in the bathtub cleaning device according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows a system configuration of a bathtub cleaning device provided with this device.
This bathtub cleaning system has a configuration in which a cleaning function is added to a fully automatic bathtub, and cleaning nozzles 2 a and 2 b are provided on the opposite wall surface of the bathtub 1. The pipeline from the bottom side of the bathtub 1 to the washing nozzles 2a, 2b through the return branch pipe 3, the return pipe 5, the circulation pump 6, the reheating heat exchanger 7, the outgoing pipe 8, and the outgoing branch pipes 10, 11 in order is A cleaning liquid circulation pipe is formed, and reaches the cleaning nozzles 2a and 2b via the return branch pipe 4, the return pipe 5, the circulation pump 6, the reheating heat exchanger 7, the forward pipe 8 and the forward branch pipes 10 and 11. The pipeline constitutes a reheating circulation pipeline. The reheating circulation line is connected to a hot water supply pipe 14 of a water heater 13 via a hot water supply valve 12 such as an electromagnetic valve, thereby constituting a fully automatic bath kettle having a washing function.

The outgoing pipe 8 is connected to a detergent feeding device which is characteristic in this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the detergent injection device includes a detergent tank 17 and a piston drive pump.
41. A piston 43 is reciprocally accommodated in a cylinder 42 of the piston drive pump 41. The base end of the piston rod 44 is connected to a motor 45 as a piston drive source. The motor 45 is provided with a conversion mechanism for converting the rotation of the motor into a linear movement forward and backward, so that the forward and reverse rotation of the motor causes the piston 43 to perform a discharge movement (advance movement) and a suction movement (retreat movement). Has become. An air circulation hole 47 is provided in the wall surface of the rear chamber 46 of the cylinder 42, and a suction passage 50 is formed in the front chamber of the cylinder 42, that is, the working chamber 48. The side penetrates into the detergent in the detergent tank 17. A suction check valve 51 is provided in the suction passage 50 to prevent the backflow of the detergent from the working chamber 48 to the detergent tank 17.

On the other hand, a discharge passage 52 is provided at the front end (front end) of the working chamber 48, and the front end of the discharge passage 52 is connected to the outgoing pipe 8 of the follow-up circulation circuit. The discharge passage 52 is provided with a discharge check valve 53 and a detergent detection sensor 54. The discharge check valve 53 prevents backflow from the additional heating circulation pipe side to the working chamber 48, and the detergent detection sensor 54 detects the presence or absence of detergent in the discharge passage 52. This detergent detection sensor 54 slidably accommodates a float 56 in a sliding chamber 55, and a magnet 57 is provided in the float 56,
The reed switch 60 is provided on the peripheral wall 58 of the
When the inside is empty, the float 56 is located under the sliding chamber 55 by its own weight. At this time, the magnet 57 and the reed switch 60 face each other, and an ON signal is output from the reed switch 60. I have. When the inside of the discharge passage 52 is filled with the detergent, the float 56 is moved by the buoyancy to the sliding chamber 55.
As a result of the magnet 57 being separated from the reed switch 60 and located above the reed switch 60, an off signal is output from the reed switch 60.

The detergent tank 17 is provided with a level sensor 61 for detecting a detergent liquid level in the tank. The level sensor 61 can be constituted by various mechanisms. For example, as shown in the figure, a guide shaft 62 is protruded upward from the bottom side of the detergent tank, and a float 63 is slidably fitted on the guide shaft 62. , The float 63 is provided with a magnet 64, and a reed switch is provided on the side of the detergent tank.
65 is provided. Under such a configuration, the float
When 63 is at the lower limit position, the magnet 64 faces the reed switch 65, and an ON signal is output from the reed switch 65. When the float 63 rises from the lower limit position due to the buoyancy of the detergent, the magnet 64 is set to the reed switch. The reed switch 65 outputs an off signal from the reed switch 65. The on / off signal of the level sensor 61 causes the detergent tank
Detergent liquid level in the 17 will be able to detect the one of the bottom surface of the detergent tank 17 or exceeds the level of H _1, or level of an H ₁ or less. A detergent introduction pipe 66 is provided in the detergent tank 17.
The other end of the detergent introduction pipe 66 is connected to a detergent inlet 38 provided on the apron side of the bathtub 1. The detergent is supplied from the detergent inlet 38 to the detergent tank 17.
Detergent can be stored in.

In this embodiment, at the time of washing the bathtub, when the detergent is introduced into the forward pipe 8 of the detergent introduction section, the motor 45 is driven, and the piston 43 moves backward from the end position of the discharge movement shown by the chain line in FIG. Perform suction movement in the direction. Due to this suction movement, the working chamber 48 becomes negative pressure, and the negative pressure causes the valve body 51a of the suction check valve 51 to move in the opening direction against the elastic restoring force of the spring 51b. Opened detergent tank
The detergent in 17 is sucked through the suction passage 50, and the working chamber 48
A predetermined amount of detergent enters the inside. When the suction movement of the piston 43 ends, the suction and discharge valve 51 is closed, and the communication between the detergent tank 17 and the working chamber 48 is cut off. Next, when the piston 43 performs the discharge movement in the advance direction, the discharge pressure causes the valve body 53a of the discharge check valve 53 to move in the opening direction against the elastic restoring force of the spring 53b. 53 is opened, and the detergent in the working chamber 48 is injected into the forward pipe 8 through the discharge passage 52. The reciprocation of the piston 43 is performed a predetermined number of times until the total amount of the detergent is reached. For example, when the discharge amount at one time is 10 cc and the total amount of detergent is 30 cc, the discharge operation is repeated three times. Then, when the final charging operation is completed, the motor 45 is stopped, and at the same time, the discharge check valve 53 is closed and the communication between the inside of the forward pipe 8 and the working chamber 48 is cut off.

In FIG. 1, 9 is a pressure sensor for detecting the water level in the bathtub 1, 18 is a drain pipe connected to the bottom of the bathtub 1,
19 is a drain valve, 20 and 21 are return pipe on / off valves, 22 and 23 are nozzle on / off valves, 24 is a water flow sensor, 25 is a flow rate sensor, 26, 27, and 28 are temperature sensors that detect the temperature of liquid in the pipe, 30 Indicates a water supply pipe. Pressure sensor 9 and return pipe opening / closing valve
20 and 21 and the detergent charging device are compactly integrated as a cleaning unit 37, and are installed, for example, below the upper edge wet edge of the bathtub 1.

The drain valve 19, return pipe opening / closing valves 20, 21;
Pipe line opening / closing (valve opening / closing) control of the nozzle opening / closing valves 22 and 23 and the pouring valve 12, the circulation pump 6 and the piston driving pump 41
Is controlled by the control device 31 and the combustion control of the reheating heat exchanger 7 and the water heater 13 (burner combustion control). A remote controller 32 is connected to the controller 31.The remote controller 32 has a fully automatic button 33 for continuously performing a cleaning operation, a hot water filling operation, and a reheating operation, and a reheating water temperature setting unit 35. A filling level setting unit 36 and a detergent supply display unit 34 for notifying the supply of the detergent are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 31 includes a signal input unit 70, a command / control unit 71, a timer 72, and a calculation unit 73.
And a memory 74. The signal input unit 70 receives a signal from the remote controller 32, a water level detection signal from the pressure sensor 9, a water flow detection signal from the water flow sensor 24, and a temperature sensor.
The temperature detection signals from 26, 27, and 28, the flow rate detection signal from the flow rate sensor 25, the level detection signal of the detergent liquid level from the level sensor 61, and the detergent detection signal from the detergent detection sensor 54 are received. Is applied to the command / control unit 71. The command / control unit 71 includes a signal from the signal input unit 70 and a memory.
Receiving information on the program from the bath tub cleaning to hot water filling and reheating, given to 74, the progress of the program from the bath tub cleaning operation to the reheating operation is grasped, and the timer 72 is operated by the timer 72 as necessary. Instruct the arithmetic unit 73 to calculate the amount of water and the like, and to appropriately set various valves 12, 19, 20, 21, and 2
An open / close control signal is output to 2 and 23, and the operation of the circulation pump 6 and the control of burner combustion of each heat exchanger for reheating and hot water supply are performed.

On the other hand, the command / control unit 71 includes a detergent detection sensor 54, a level sensor 61, and a piston drive pump.
Obtain information on the operation status of 41, the operation status of the detergent injection device,
In other words, the state of the detergent tank is empty, the state of the steady operation of the detergent input, and the state immediately before the detergent runs out are determined. That is, an ON signal (a state in which the float 63 is at the lower limit position) is output from the level sensor 61, and an ON signal (the float 56 of the detergent detection sensor) is output from the detergent detection sensor 54 even though the piston drive pump 41 has performed the discharging operation. Is output at the lower limit position), it is determined that the detergent tank 17 is empty. Further, an ON signal is output from the level sensor 61, and an OFF signal (a state in which the discharge passage 52 is filled with the detergent and the float 56 is at the upper position due to the buoyancy of the detergent) is output from the detergent detection sensor 54. the time was, the liquid level of the detergent in the detergent tank 17 becomes H ₁ below, it is determined that the detergent is running low state (detergent out previous state). When the detergent tank 17 is empty and when it is determined that the remaining amount of detergent is low, it is determined that the detergent needs to be replenished, and when the detergent tank 17 is empty, the detergent supply indicator 34 of the remote controller 32 is displayed. Detergent replenishment is displayed, and when it is determined that the remaining amount of detergent is low, a preliminary display of detergent replenishment is similarly displayed on the detergent replenishment display unit 34.

The memory 74 incorporates a program for fully automatic operation from bathtub cleaning to reheating of the bath and an operation program for the detergent dispenser. The memory 74 also has calculation results such as water volume calculation and input values input from outside (for example, (Setting value).

This embodiment is configured as described above.
Next, the operation of the detergent dispenser will be described based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 during a series of fully automatic operations from washing the bathtub to reheating the bath. First, bathtub 1
The lid (not shown) is set on the remote controller 32, and the hot water temperature setting section 35 of the remote controller 32 sets the hot water temperature for reheating, and the hot water level setting section 36 sets the hot water level. Button 33
Is turned on, this on signal is applied to the signal input
It is added to the command / control unit 71 via 70. Command / control unit 71
Receives the command of the fully automatic operation mode, and
Preparing operation for detergent introduction to drain the remaining hot water in the bathtub 1 and open the inside of the recirculating circulation pipe to the atmosphere is performed until 5.

That is, the command / control section 71 is provided with the pressure sensor 9
When the water level is detected, it is determined that there is hot water in the bathtub 1 and the nozzle opening / closing valves 22 and 23
After opening the return pipe opening / closing valve 21, the drain valve 19 is opened to drain the bathtub hot water. When the water level is no longer detected by the signal from the pressure sensor 9, it is determined that the bathtub 1 is empty, and the drain valve 19 is closed.

Next, the detergent input operation from steps 106 to 114 is performed. First, as shown in FIG.
At 106, it is determined whether or not the level sensor 61 outputs an off signal. When the off signal is output, it is determined that the float 63 is at the upper position and the detergent is stored in the detergent tank 17. At this time, in the next step 107, it is determined whether or not the detergent detection sensor 54 outputs an off signal. When the OFF signal is output, the detergent has already been filled in the suction passage 50 and the discharge passage 52, and the float 56 of the detergent detection sensor 54 is located above due to the buoyancy of the detergent. Is determined to be a steady operation state, and the piston drive pump 41 is determined in step 113.
Is driven to perform the discharge operation of the piston 43 N times (N is an integer of 1 or more), and a predetermined amount, for example, 30 cc of the detergent is supplied through the discharge passage 52 into the circulation path of the cleaning liquid, ie, the outgoing pipe 8, which is a charging section. I do.

If the detergent detection sensor 54 outputs an ON signal in step 107, the float 56 is located below by its own weight, so that even if the detergent tank 17 is full of detergent, the suction passage 50 Since there is no detergent inside and the inside is filled with air, it is necessary to remove the air. Therefore, in step 108, the piston drive pump 41 is operated to repeat the discharge operation, and waits for the detergent detection sensor 54 to output an off signal. That is, by repeating the discharge operation of the piston drive pump 41, the air in the suction passage 50 is discharged from the discharge passage 52 side, and the detergent in the detergent tank 17 is gradually sucked from the suction passage 50 side. When the sucked detergent is pushed out from the piston drive pump 41 toward the discharge passage 52 and the inside of the discharge passage 52 is filled with the detergent, the float 56 of the detergent detection sensor 54 receives the buoyancy of the detergent and moves upward. , An off signal is output from the reed switch 60. When this OFF signal is output, it is determined that the air bleeding in the suction passage 50 and the discharge passage 52 has been completed, and the detergent charging operation in and after step 113 is performed.

If the ON signal is output from the level sensor 61 in step 106, it is determined that the float 63 of the level sensor 61 is at the lower limit position, and step 110
In performing determination of whether the detergent in the detergent tank 17 is or level H ₁ below is empty. The determination is made based on whether the signal of the detergent detection sensor 54 is an ON signal or an OFF signal. When the signal is an ON signal, it is determined that the float 56 of the detergent detection sensor 54 is at the lower limit position and the discharge passage is determined. 52
The inside of the detergent tank 17 is judged to be empty because the detergent has run out and the detergent is judged to be empty. At step 112, the detergent supply display unit 34 of the remote controller 33 is notified of the detergent supply. Informing of the detergent replenishment, a message indicating that the detergent tank 17 must be replenished because the detergent tank 17 is empty is displayed on the detergent replenishment display section 34 by character display, and a buzzer (not shown) sounds as necessary.

When the off signal is output from the detergent detection sensor 54 in step 110, it is determined that the discharge passage 52 is filled with the detergent, but the amount of the detergent is small, and the detergent is cut off by several washing operations. Then, in step 111, a preliminary display of detergent replenishment is displayed on the detergent replenishment display section 34 of the remote controller 32. This preliminary display of detergent replenishment is made by displaying a message in the detergent replenishment display section 34 that the detergent is low and that the detergent is in a state immediately before the detergent runs out. Then, after the preliminary display of the detergent replenishment is performed, the detergent input operation in and after step 113 is performed, and a predetermined amount of the detergent is discharged to the forward pipe 8.

Next, the operation proceeds to the cleaning operation in steps 115 to 154. In this cleaning operation, first, step 115
From step to step 117, an operation of storing a minimum amount of washing liquid necessary for normally operating the circulation pump 6 on the bottom side of the bathtub 1 is performed. That is, the pouring valve 12 is opened to replenish hot water on the side of the water heater 13 and to supply the hot water into the circulation pipe, and the hot water is supplied to the cleaning nozzles 2a and 2a.
b and drop it into the bathtub 1 from the return branch pipe 4 side. As a result, a cleaning liquid in which a detergent and hot water are mixed is stored on the bottom surface side of the bathtub 1. The amount of hot water dropped into the bathtub 1 from the water heater 13 is determined by the cumulative calculation of the detected flow rate obtained from the flow sensor 25. When the cumulative calculation value reaches a predetermined X ₁ liter, the minimum required amount of cleaning liquid Is determined to be stored in the bathtub 1 and the pouring valve 12 is closed.

Next, in steps 118 to 125, the bath tub is cleaned by the cleaning nozzle 2a. This behavior is
This is performed by closing the nozzle on-off valve 23, closing the return pipe on-off valve 21 and opening 20 and activating the circulation pump 6. By this pump activation, the cleaning liquid on the bottom side of the bathtub is injected from the return branch pipe 3 through the circulation pump 6, the reheating heat exchanger 7, the forward pipe 8 and the forward branch pipe 10 from the cleaning nozzle 2 a toward the inner wall surface of the bathtub. You. At the time of the circulation injection of the cleaning liquid, the cleaning liquid passing through the cleaning liquid circulation line has an optimum temperature (50 ° C. to 50 ° C. in the present embodiment) for exhibiting the chemical cleaning ability of the detergent in the reheating heat exchanger 7.
Heating is controlled in steps 120 to 123 to a temperature set within a range of 60 ° C., for example, a hot water-like cleaning liquid heated and controlled to 60 ° C. is circulated and sprayed from the cleaning nozzle 2a to the inner wall surface of the bathtub, and the stain on the inner wall surface of the bathtub is removed Cleanly dropped. After the cleaning liquid jetting of the cleaning nozzle 2a is performed a predetermined time (T ₂ hours),
Next, in steps 126 to 133, the cleaning liquid is similarly sprayed from the cleaning nozzle 2b. This cleaning nozzle 2b
Cleaning solution spray from the circulating pump 6 when a predetermined period of time (T ₃ hours) has elapsed is stopped, the cleaning liquid soiled accumulated in the bathtub bottom side is drained drainage valve 19 is opened at step 134.

Next, in steps 135 to 138, the bathtub inner wall surface is washed with hot water by the washing nozzle 2b. In this hot water washing, the return pipe opening / closing valve 20 is closed and the pouring valve 12 is opened to guide the hot water from the water heater 13 to the washing nozzle 2b while washing the inside of the pipe from the outgoing pipe 8 side. This is done by injecting. The cleaning liquid adhering to the inner wall surface of the bathtub and the dirt components dropped by the cleaning liquid are washed away by the hot water injection and discharged from the drain pipe 18. After the hot water is injected from the cleaning nozzle 2b for a predetermined time,
From 139 to 142, hot water from the water heater 13 is supplied to the washing nozzle 2a from the outgoing pipe 8 and the washing nozzle 2a is used to wash hot water on the inner wall surface of the bathtub in the same manner. After the cleaning nozzle 2a cleans the inner wall of the bathtub with hot water,
From 143 to 148, the return branch pipe 4 is washed with hot water. This hot water washing is performed by dropping hot water from the water heater 13 from the return pipe 5 through the return branch pipe 4 into the bathtub and draining it from the drain pipe 18. After the hot-water washing of the return branch pipe 4 has been performed for a predetermined time, the hot water of the water heater 13 is passed through the return branch pipe 3 so that the hot-water washing of the return branch pipe 3 is similarly performed from steps 149 to 153. . After the return branch pipe 3 has been washed with hot water, the drain valve 19 is closed in step 154, and the bathtub washing operation ends.

Next, the operation proceeds to the filling operation of steps 155 to 158. First, in step 155, the nozzle on-off valves 22 and 23 are opened, and at the same time, the return pipe on-off valve 21 is opened. Next, at step 156, the pouring valve 12 is opened, and the hot water from the hot water supply heat exchanger side is supplied to the additional heating circulation pipe side, passes through both the return pipe 5 and the forward pipe 8, and returns to the washing nozzles 2a and 2b. It is dropped into the bathtub 1 from the return circulation port of the pipe 4. The level of the hot water in the hot water is detected by the pressure sensor 9.
In step 157, based on the water level detection signal from the pressure sensor 9, it is determined whether or not the detected water level has reached the water level set by the hot water level setting unit 36 of the remote controller 32. When the detected water level has reached the set water level The filling valve 12 is closed, and the filling operation is stopped.

Next, the reheating operation is performed in steps 159 to 163. First, in step 159, the circulation pump 6
Is started, and the hot water in the bathtub 1 is sucked from the return branch pipe 4 through the return pipe 5 to the circulation pump 6, and the sucked hot water is reheated from the discharge side of the circulation pump 6 to the heat exchanger 7.
And the bathtub 1 from the washing nozzles 2a and 2b through the outgoing pipe 8.
It is discharged into. After the circulation of the hot water is started, in step 160, the detected temperature of the hot water in the bathtub 1 detected by the temperature sensor 26 is compared with the temperature set by the additional hot water temperature setting unit 35 of the remote controller 32. When the detected temperature is lower than the set temperature, burner combustion of the reheating heat exchanger 7 is started to reheat the circulating hot water. During the reheating, the detected temperature is constantly compared with the set temperature, and the reheating is continued until the detected temperature does not reach the set temperature. When the detected temperature reaches the set temperature, the circulation pump 6
Is stopped, and in the case of reheating, the burner combustion of the reheating heat exchanger is further stopped. Next, in step 163, the nozzle on-off valves 22 and 23 are closed, and the return pipe on-off valve 21 is further closed to end the reheating operation.

According to this embodiment, when the detergent is introduced into the washing liquid circulation line by the detergent introducing device, the level sensor 61 is used.
Signal from the detergent detection sensor 54 and the detergent tank
It is possible to know exactly whether the detergent in 17 is empty or is running out, and as a result, a replenishment display and a preliminary display of the detergent are performed, so that the cleaning operation can be stopped when the detergent is running out. At the same time, when the detergent is running out, the detergent can be replenished with sufficient time before the detergent is run out, and the bathtub cleaning operation can always be performed in a normal state.

When the cleaning operation is performed for the first time after the installation of the apparatus, the piston drive pump 41 is driven based on the signal of the detergent detection sensor 54 to drive the pipe from the detergent tank 17 to the inlet of the forward pipe 8. Since a predetermined amount of detergent can be injected by the piston drive pump 41 on the basis of the time when the inside of the duct of the detergent introduction path is filled with the detergent by bleeding the passage, the detergent introduction amount becomes accurate. In addition, since the discharge operation is performed by the piston drive pump 41, the washing operation proceeds because the detergent does not reach the washing liquid circulation line, but is erroneously determined that a predetermined amount of the detergent has been introduced. The problem will surely be resolved.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can take various embodiments. For example, the above embodiment has a configuration in which a bathtub cleaning device is added to a fully automatic bath kettle, but the water heater 13 is omitted in the system shown in FIG. The passage may be configured, and may take the form of various cleaning systems.

In the above embodiment, the detergent supply display unit 34 is provided on the remote controller 32 of the control device 31. However, the detergent supply display unit 34 may be provided on another location such as a panel surface of the control device 31. . Further, in the above embodiment, the detergent replenishment display and the preliminary display of the detergent replenishment are configured to be notified by character display such as a message.However, these detergent replenishment displays and the preliminary display are displayed by other methods such as lighting or blinking of a lamp. May go. In this case, for example, when the preliminary display of detergent replenishment is performed, a display by lighting is performed, and in the case of the detergent replenishment display, a blinking display is performed. It is convenient to display with.

Further, in this embodiment, the level sensor 61 is constituted by a float type sensor, but may be constituted by another sensor as long as it can detect the liquid level of the detergent. Similarly, the detergent detection sensor 54 may be any sensor that can determine whether or not the conduit from the detergent tank 17 to the charging section is filled with the detergent, and a sensor having a configuration other than the float type may be used. it can.

Further, in the above embodiment, the detergent is supplied to the forward pipe 8, but the detergent can be supplied to the return pipe 5, the bathtub 1, etc., at any position in the circulation path of the cleaning liquid including the bathtub 1. .

Further, in the embodiment, the detergent detection sensor 54 is provided in the discharge passage 52, but may be provided in the suction passage 50.

[0037]

According to the present invention, a level sensor for detecting the liquid level of the detergent is provided on the detergent tank side, and a detergent detecting sensor for detecting the detergent is provided on a path extending from the detergent tank to the detergent introduction portion. Therefore, based on the signal of the level sensor and the detection signal of the detergent detection sensor, it is possible to discriminate and determine the state where the detergent tank is empty, the steady operation state of detergent input, and the state immediately before the detergent runs out, Each decision
Command and control a predetermined control signal corresponding to the result
Output from the unit to perform device operation according to each judgment result
be able to. For example, when the detergent tank is empty or the detergent is running out, the user is notified of the replenishment of the detergent, so that the user can replenish the detergent in accordance with the notification, and the detergent is always in a normal state without running out of detergent. It is possible to perform a bathtub cleaning operation.

When the cleaning operation is performed for the first time after the installation of the apparatus, when the detergent input device is operated to supply the detergent, when the detergent is detected by the detergent detection sensor, that is, when the detergent tank is detected. A predetermined amount of detergent can be introduced based on the time when the path from the detergent to the detergent introduction section is filled with the detergent. It is possible to reliably perform the bath tub cleaning operation by adding the detergent.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a bath system diagram showing an embodiment of a detergent charging device in a bathtub cleaning device according to the present invention in a state of connection with an automatic bath kettle.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of an embodiment of a detergent charging device in the bathtub cleaning device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a main block diagram showing a configuration example of a control device that controls the device of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the detergent dosing apparatus of the present embodiment together with a series of fully automatic operation from bathtub cleaning to reheating.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a part of the detergent input operation extracted from the flowchart of FIG. 4;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Bathtub 17 Detergent tank 41 Piston drive pump 54 Detergent detection sensor 61 Level sensor

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A detergent tank for containing a detergent, and a piston drive pump for sucking the detergent in the detergent tank and supplying the detergent to an inlet of the detergent in the bathtub cleaning device, wherein the detergent tank contains a detergent liquid. together with the level sensor for detecting the surface level is provided, the path from the detergent tank to the insertion portion of the detergent is provided with a detergent sensor for detecting the detergent further detergent input movement of said piston driven pump
Detection signal of the level sensor detected during cropping and detergent detection
The level sensor is set in advance based on the detection signal of the output sensor.
The liquid level below the specified lower level is detected and the detergent detection
When the sensor detects no detergent, the detergent tank is empty.
Status, and the level sensor is
When the surface is detected and the detergent detection sensor detects the presence of detergent,
Indicates that the detergent is in a steady operation state, and the level sensor
The liquid level below the limit level is detected and the detergent detection sensor
When the presence of a detergent is detected, the condition immediately before the detergent runs out is judged.
Predetermined according to the results of these determinations.
A detergent feeding device for a bathtub cleaning device provided with a command / control section for outputting a control signal . 2. A detergent for sucking detergent from a detergent tank with a piston drive pump, and detecting the liquid level of the detergent in the detergent tank by a level sensor at the time of a detergent charging operation in which the sucked detergent is charged from the piston drive pump to a charging portion. At the same time, the detergent is detected by the detergent detection sensor along the path from the detergent tank to the detergent introduction section, and the level sensor is set in advance based on the detection signal of the level sensor and the detection signal of the detergent detection sensor.
The liquid level below the specified lower level is detected and the detergent detection
When the sensor detects that there is no detergent, it judges that the detergent tank is empty, and the level sensor
When the surface is detected and the detergent detection sensor detects the presence of detergent,
Below is determined that the steady operation state of the detergent, the level sensor
The liquid level below the limit level is detected and the detergent detection sensor
When the presence of the detergent is detected, it is determined that the detergent is in a state immediately before the detergent runs out, and when the detergent tank is empty and immediately before the detergent runs out , the detergent feeding operation state in the detergent feeding device for notifying the detergent replenishment is performed. Detection method.