JP3389776B2 - Hot water tank - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hot water tank used in a sanitary washing device mounted on a Western style toilet.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a sanitary washing device, a hot water tank storing hot water boiled to a predetermined temperature by electric heating of an electric heater is used to discharge hot water from a washing nozzle toward a local part of a human body. Is known (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-97030).

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a conventional hot water tank 200. In FIG. 10, a hot water tank 200 is installed on a sleeve portion of a sanitary washing device on a Western-style toilet and includes a tank body 210 made of resin. At the bottom of the tank body 210, a water inlet pipe 220 connected to a water supply source.
The water inlet 220a is disposed, and the water intake 230a of the water outlet pipe 230 is disposed above the tank body 210. Further, the tank main body 210 has an electric heater 24 at the bottom thereof.
The heat generating part 240a of 0 is installed, and the thermistor 250 is provided in the middle thereof. This thermistor 25
0 is connected to an electronic control unit (not shown). The electronic control unit feedback-controls the energization amount of the electric heater 240 based on the detection signal from the thermistor 250 so as to reach the set temperature set by the operation unit.

[0004]

In the hot water tank 200 of this type, in order to prevent the hot water in the tank main body 210 from being mixed with the water from the water inlet pipe 220, the shape of the water inlet pipe 220 is made downward and widened toward the end. The water flow is weakened to supply water into the tank body 210. By the way, in recent years, it has been considered to make the tank main body shallow to have a horizontally long shape in order to make the tank main body compact and to install it on a Western-style toilet. However, if the tank body is made shallow, even if the water supplied from the water inlet pipe is slightly disturbed, the hot water in the tank body is agitated and the temperature of the water discharged from the water outlet pipe is lowered.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a hot water tank having a long time capable of continuously supplying hot water of an appropriate temperature.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problem and Its Action / Effect] A first invention made to solve the above-mentioned problem is to provide a hot water tank for discharging stored hot water to the outside,
Surrounded by the bottom wall and side walls, the tank body that stores hot water, the electric heater that is arranged in the lower part of the tank body, and the one corner of the tank body are arranged. A water inlet pipe having a water inlet for supplying into the tank body, and a water outlet pipe connected to a water discharge passage for supplying hot water to the outside and having a water inlet at the upper part of the tank body are provided, and the water inlet is It is characterized in that it is open to the other corner of the tank body that is the farthest from the one corner of the tank body at the side of the lower end.

In the first invention, the water in the tank body is heated by the electric heater and stored as hot water in the tank body. Water from the water supply source is supplied into the tank body from the water inlet of the water inlet pipe. The water inlet pipe is installed at one corner of the tank body, and its water inlet is formed by opening on the side wall at the lower end of the water inlet pipe, and its direction is farthest from the position where the water inlet pipe is installed. It opens toward the other corner. The water flow supplied from the water inlet of the water inlet pipe is wavy around the line connecting the water inlet pipe and the other corners, and is strong near the center line and weaker toward the periphery.

That is, in the direction in which the water inlet is directed to the other corner, a strong water flow flows along the bottom wall and becomes weaker as the distance from the center line and the distance to the bottom wall becomes shorter. It flows with water. Therefore, the water supplied from the water inlet of the water inlet pipe reaches the side wall of the tank body at almost the same time, that is, it is guided almost uniformly throughout the tank body, and the hot water in the tank body is raised upward. Push up evenly. As a result, only a part of the inside of the tank main body is not agitated and low temperature water is not discharged from the water discharge pipe, and it is possible to lengthen the time during which hot water of an appropriate temperature can be continuously supplied.

A second aspect of the present invention is a hot water tank for discharging the stored hot water to the outside, wherein the tank body is surrounded by the top plate portion, the bottom wall portion and the side wall portion and stores the hot water. An electric heater arranged in the lower part, a water inlet pipe having a water inlet for supplying water into the tank body, and a water discharge passage for supplying hot water to the outside from the lower part in the tank body, which is arranged in one corner of the tank body. It is connected and has a water intake pipe with an intake port at the top of the tank body, a water amount setting means for setting the amount of water to be supplied from the water inlet pipe, and a water supply port for supplying water according to the water amount set by the water amount setting means. Flow rate changing means for changing the flow rate of the water flowing from the one corner of the tank body to the other most distant corner.

In the second aspect of the invention, the amount of water supplied from the water inlet of the water inlet pipe can be changed by the water amount setting means, and the flow velocity changing means is provided at one corner of the tank body in which the water inlet pipe is installed according to the change of the water amount. Change the water flow to the farthest corner from the section. For example, when the amount of water is large, the flow velocity toward the opposite side wall portion of the tank body is reduced, while when the amount of water is small, the flow velocity toward the side wall portion is increased. As a result, water can be supplied uniformly over the entire tank body regardless of the amount of water supplied from the water inlet of the water inlet pipe. Therefore, the warm water in the tank body is not agitated and is not agitated, and the duration of time when the warm water of an appropriate temperature is discharged from the water discharge pipe becomes longer.

Furthermore, the aspect ratio of the tank body is 1: 1-3.
Even in a hot water tank having a rectangular parallelepiped shape or a horizontally long shape in the range of 3, the hot water of substantially the same temperature can be stably discharged.

[0012]

1 is an external view of a Western-style toilet with a sanitary washing device equipped with a hot water tank according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the sanitary washing device 10 is
The case body 12 is attached to the Western-style toilet 11.
And an operation unit 13 provided on the sleeve of the case body 12,
The case main body 12 is provided with a toilet seat 15 and a toilet lid 16 which are rotatably supported, and a water discharge mechanism 20 for discharging hot water. A flush tank 17 is installed at the rear of the western-style toilet 11.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the water discharge mechanism 20 of the sanitary washing device 10. The water discharge mechanism 20 includes a water inlet passage 22 connected to a water supply source 21, a pressure reducing valve 23a and a solenoid valve 23b provided in the water inlet passage 22, a hot water tank 30 connected to a downstream side of the water inlet passage 22, and hot water. A cleaning nozzle 25 that supplies hot water heated in a tank 30 through a discharge passage 24 and ejects the hot water, a flow rate control valve 26 that discharges or stops the hot water to the cleaning nozzle 25, and an electronic control device. And 28. The electronic control unit 28 sends a drive signal to the electromagnetic valve 23b and the flow rate control valve 26 to open the valve based on the operation command of the operation unit 13, and ejects hot water from the cleaning nozzle 25 toward the local area of the human body.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the hot water tank 30, FIG.
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 3. 3 and 4
The hot water tank 30 includes a tank body 40, a water inlet pipe 50, a water outlet pipe 60, an electric heater 70, and a thermistor 80.

The tank body 40 is installed on the rear end of the western-style toilet 11 and close to the flush tank 17, and is made of polyamide 66 (PA66), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene glass fiber (ABSGF), polypropylene glass fiber (PPGF). It is formed of a resin such as, and is surrounded by the top plate portion 40a, the side wall portion 40b, and the bottom wall portion 40c, and has a horizontally long shape with an aspect ratio of approximately 1: 1 to 3. As described above, by making the tank body 40 laterally long, the tank body 40 can be built in the case body 12, and the sanitary washing device 10 can be made compact as a whole.

The water inlet pipe 50 is connected to the water supply source 21 on the upstream side and is installed at one corner Ca of the tank body 40.
A water inlet 50a is provided at the lower end of the water inlet pipe 50. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an end portion of the water inlet pipe 50. Water inlet 5
0a is a lower opening 50b opened at the lower end of the water inlet pipe 50
And a side port 50c cut out in the side wall of the water inlet pipe 50. The direction of the side opening 50c opens toward the other corner Cb which is the farthest from the position where the water inlet pipe 50 is installed.

Returning to FIG. 3, the water discharge pipe 60 is the tank body 40.
And the discharge passage 24 are connected to each other, and water intake ports 60a are provided at the lower portions thereof.

The electric heater 70 is a sheathed heater,
It is fixed to the bottom wall portion 40c of the tank body 40 via an insulating member 72 and has a heat generating portion 70a. The heat generating portion 70a is arranged parallel to the bottom wall portion 40c of the tank body 40.

The thermistor 80 is inserted through the top plate portion 40a of the tank body 40 into the tank body 40.
The temperature of the hot water in the tank body 40 is detected by the detection unit 80a at the lower end thereof. The detection signal of the thermistor 80 is input to the electronic control unit 28, and the electronic control unit 28
Performs feedback control of the amount of electricity supplied to the electric heater 70 so as to approach the temperature set by the operation unit 13, and controls the opening / closing of the electromagnetic valve 23b and the flow rate control valve 26.

Next, the cleaning nozzle 2 of the sanitary cleaning device 10
The water discharge operation from 5 will be described. Now, when the user operates the operation unit 13, a water discharge start command is output via the electronic control unit 28, and the electromagnetic valve 23b and the flow rate control valve 26 are output.
Opens. By this valve opening, the water from the water supply source 21 enters the tank body 40 through the water inlet pipe 50.

The water flow supplied from the water inlet 50a of the water inlet pipe 50 is wavy around the line connecting the water inlet pipe 50 and the other corner Cb, and is strong in the vicinity of the center line CL and goes toward the periphery thereof. The flow becomes weak. That is, in a direction in which the side opening 50c of the water inlet 50a is directed to the other corner Cb, a strong water flow flows along the bottom wall portion 40c, away from the center line CL, and the distance to the side wall portion 40b is short. It flows with a weak water flow.

Therefore, the water supplied from the water inlet 50a of the water inlet pipe 50 reaches the side wall portion 40b of the tank body 40 in substantially the same time, that is, the tank body 4
It is guided almost uniformly to the whole inside of 0, and the warm water in the tank body 40 is uniformly pushed upward. As a result, only a portion of the hot water in the tank body 40 is not agitated, and low-temperature water is not discharged from the water discharge pipe 60, and the hot water of an appropriate temperature can be continuously supplied for a long time.

Next, the experimental results regarding the relationship between the side opening 50c of the water inlet 50a and the duration of hot water will be described. Figure 6
FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the arrangement of the water inlet pipe 50 in the tank body 40 and the direction of the side inlet 50c of the water inlet 50a,
The water inlet pipe 50 is installed at one end of the tank body 40 so that the direction of the side inlet 50c of the water inlet 50a can be changed within the range of 0 ° to 225 °. FIG. 7 shows the angle A of the water inlet pipe 50.
It is a graph which shows the relationship between n and the continuous time which discharges the warm water of 39 degreeC. As can be seen from FIG. 7, when the angle An of the water inlet 50a is 158 °, that is, the side opening 5 of the water inlet 50a.
The longest duration could be obtained when 0c was heading to the other corner Cb.

FIG. 8 shows a water discharge mechanism 2 according to another embodiment.
0B is a schematic configuration diagram, and FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view showing a lower portion of the water inlet pipe 50B. 8 and 9, the water inlet pipe 50B is provided with a water outlet changing device 150 capable of changing the opening area of the water inlet 50Ba. The water spout changing device 150 includes a sleeve 151 fitted on the water inlet pipe 50B.
And a gear mechanism 153 connected to one end of the sleeve 151 via a rod 152, and a lifting motor 154 connected to the gear mechanism 153 and driven and controlled by the electronic control unit 28. At the time of water discharge, the electronic control unit 28 reads the set water discharge amount Qk set by the operation unit 13, sends a drive signal to the lifting motor 154 to move the sleeve 151 up and down, and thereby the water inlet 50Ba of the water inlet pipe 50B is controlled. The opening area of the side opening 50Bc is changed.

The control process by the electronic control unit 28 is executed based on the map stored in advance in the ROM. For example, when the set water discharge amount Qk is large, the sleeve 151
By increasing the opening area of the side inlet 50Bc of the water inlet 50Ba to reduce the flow velocity in one direction,
On the other hand, when the set water discharge amount Qk is small, the sleeve 15
1 is lowered to increase the flow velocity in one direction, so that the water reaches the corner of the tank body 40.
In this way, by changing the opening area of the side inlet 50Bc of the water inlet 50Ba according to the set water discharge amount Qk and supplying water uniformly over the entire tank body 40, it is possible to agitate only part of the hot water. In addition, it is possible to extend the duration of time when hot water of an appropriate temperature can be supplied.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can be implemented in various modes without departing from the scope of the invention, and the following modifications can be made.

The hot water tank according to the above-described embodiment has been described as the sanitary washing device mounted on the Western-style toilet.
Of course, any device that supplies hot water can be applied to various places such as a hot water supply device in a kitchen.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a Western-style toilet equipped with a sanitary washing device with a hot water tank according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a water discharge mechanism of the sanitary washing device.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a hot water tank.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a tip end portion of a water inlet pipe.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view for explaining the action of the water inlet pipe during water supply.

FIG. 7 is a graph illustrating the relationship between the angle of the water inlet and the duration of time when hot water of an appropriate temperature is discharged.

FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration diagram according to another embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a tip portion of a water inlet pipe according to another embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a conventional hot water tank.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Sanitary washing device 11 ... Western style toilet 12 ... Case body 13 ... Operation unit 15 ... Toilet seat 16 ... Toilet lid 17 ... Washing tank 20 ... Water discharge mechanism 20B ... water discharge mechanism 21 ... Water supply source 22 ... Water passage 23a ... Pressure reducing valve 23b ... Solenoid valve 24 ... Discharge passage 25 ... Cleaning nozzle 26 ... Flow control valve 28 ... Electronic control unit 30 ... Warm water tank 40 ... Tank body 40a ... Top plate 40b ... Side wall 40c ... bottom wall 50 ... Inlet pipe 50a ... water inlet 50b ... Lower opening 50c ... Side opening 50B ... Inlet pipe 50Ba ... water inlet 50Bc ... Side opening 60 ... Outlet pipe 60a ... Intake port 70 ... Electric heater 70a ... Heating part 72 ... Insulation member 80 ... Thermistor 80a ... Detector 150 ... Spout changer 151 ... Sleeve 152 ... Rod 153 ... Gear mechanism 154 ... Lifting motor Ca ... one corner Cb ... other corner

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) E03D 9/08

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A hot water tank for discharging stored hot water to the outside, a tank body for storing hot water surrounded by a top plate portion, a bottom wall portion and a side wall portion, and an electric heat disposed in a lower portion of the tank body. The heater and the tank main body are connected to a water inlet pipe that has a water inlet for supplying water into the tank main body from the lower part inside the tank main body, and a water discharge passage for supplying hot water to the outside of the tank main body. A water outlet pipe having an intake port at an upper portion thereof; and the water inlet port is opened to a side of a lower end of the water inlet pipe and to the other corner of the tank main body farthest from one corner of the tank main body. A hot water tank characterized by 2. A hot water tank that discharges stored hot water to the outside, a tank body that is surrounded by a top plate portion, a bottom wall portion, and a side wall portion, and that stores hot water, and an electric heat disposed in a lower portion inside the tank body. The heater and the tank main body are connected to a water inlet pipe that has a water inlet for supplying water into the tank main body from the lower part inside the tank main body, and a water discharge passage for supplying hot water to the outside of the tank main body. Of the flow rate of water supplied from the inlet of the water inlet pipe according to the amount of water set by the water outlet pipe that has an intake port at the top, the amount of water supplied from the water inlet pipe, and the amount of water setting unit A flow velocity changing means for changing a flow velocity from the one corner of the tank main body to the other corner farthest from the one corner. 3. The hot water tank according to claim 2, wherein the flow velocity changing means is an opening area changing unit that changes the opening area of the water inlet of the water inlet pipe. 4. The hot water tank according to claim 1, wherein the tank body has an aspect ratio of 1: 1 to 3.