JP4441888B2 - Faucet generator - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a faucet generator that generates electric power using a flow of water supply.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known an automatic faucet device in which a sensor is detected by inserting a hand under a faucet and water is automatically discharged from the faucet. There is also known a device that arranges a small generator in the flow path of such an automatic water faucet device, stores electric power obtained by the generator, and supplements electric power of a circuit such as the above-described sensor. (For example, Patent Document 1). In recent years, automatic faucets have been promoting the water-saving effect. In such automatic faucets, the amount of flowing water (hydraulic energy) used for power generation is small, and there is a slight energy loss in the energy conversion from hydraulic energy to generated power There is a strong demand for reduction.
JP 2002-89429 A

  The present invention provides a faucet generator with improved power generation efficiency.

According to one aspect of the present invention, the moving blades provided in the water supply flow path so as to be rotatable around a central axis substantially parallel to the water supply flow path, and the N pole and the S pole alternately along the circumferential direction. And a magnet that can be rotated integrally with the rotor blade, and is wound in a cylindrical shape so as to surround the water supply flow path, and is provided to face the axial end surface of the magnet. And a yoke made of a magnetic material having a plurality of pole teeth arranged apart from each other in the circumferential direction between the end face of the magnet and the coil, and provided around the coil And the pole teeth protrude alternately toward the radially outer side and the radially inner side from the side facing the inner peripheral surface part and the side facing the outer peripheral surface part of the coil, respectively. In the part facing the inner peripheral surface part and the outer peripheral surface part, Faucet generator, characterized in that the teeth provided with a counterbored portion notched along a direction in which water flows in the portion where the coil is enclosed at one end the water supply flow from the side channel provided is provided.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the generator for faucets which aimed at the improvement of power generation efficiency is provided.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each drawing, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the same component.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of attachment of an automatic faucet device with a generator (hereinafter also simply referred to as an automatic faucet device) according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the internal configuration of the automatic faucet device.

  The automatic faucet device 3 according to the present embodiment is attached to the washstand 2 or the like, for example. The automatic water faucet device 3 is connected to an inflow port 5 such as tap water via a pipe 4. The automatic water faucet device 3 includes a cylindrical main body 3a and a water discharge portion 3b provided in an upper portion of the main body 3a so as to extend in a radially outward direction of the main body 3a. A water discharge port 6 is formed at the tip of the water discharge unit 3 b, and a sensor 7 is built in the vicinity of the water discharge port 6.

  Inside the automatic water faucet device 3, a water supply passage 10 is formed that guides the water supplied from the inlet 5 and flowing through the pipe 4 to the water outlet 6. An electromagnetic valve 8 that opens and closes the water supply flow path 10 is built in the main body 3a of the automatic water faucet device 3, and a constant flow valve 55 that restricts the amount of water discharged to the downstream side of the electromagnetic valve 8 is further provided. Built in. In addition, a pressure reducing valve or a pressure regulating valve (not shown) for reducing the pressure when the water supply source pressure is too higher than the working pressure is built in upstream of the electromagnetic valve 8. The constant flow valve 55, the pressure reducing valve, and the pressure regulating valve are appropriately provided as necessary.

  A faucet generator 11 is built in the water discharger 3 b downstream of the constant flow valve 55. Inside the main body 3a, a charger 56 for charging the electric power generated by the faucet generator 11 and a controller 57 for controlling the driving of the sensor 7 and the opening / closing of the electromagnetic valve 8 are provided. Since the faucet generator 11 is disposed downstream of the solenoid valve 8 and the constant flow valve 55, the water supply source pressure (primary pressure) does not directly act on the faucet generator 11. Therefore, the faucet generator 11 does not require so high pressure resistance, and is advantageous in terms of reliability and cost.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the inside of a faucet generator according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the pre-turning stationary blade 14, the moving blade 15, and the bearing 17 in the faucet generator.
FIG. 5 is a plan view of the stator 9 in the faucet generator.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the stator 9 in the faucet generator.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a magnet M in the faucet generator.

  The faucet generator according to the present embodiment mainly includes a cylindrical body 13, a pre-turning stationary blade 14, a moving blade 15, a magnet M, and a stator 9, which are in a case 12 shown in FIG. Contained.

  The cylindrical body 13 has a stepped shape including a small-diameter portion 13a and a large-diameter portion 13b. The cylindrical body 13 is built in the water discharge portion 3b illustrated in FIGS. The central axis direction of the body 13 is installed so as to be substantially parallel to the flowing water direction. The cylindrical body 13 is disposed with the small diameter portion 13a facing the upstream side and the large diameter portion 13b facing the downstream side.

  Inside the cylindrical body 13, a pre-turning stationary blade 14, a moving blade 15, and a bearing 17 are provided in order from the upstream side. The pre-turning stationary blade 14 is provided inside the small diameter portion 13a, and the moving blade 15 and the bearing 17 are provided inside the large diameter portion 13b.

  The pre-turning stationary blade 14 has a shape in which a conical body is integrally provided on one end surface (a surface located on the upstream side) of the cylindrical body. On the peripheral surface of the pre-turning stationary blade 14, a plurality of protruding stationary blade blade portions 18 projecting in the radially outward direction are provided. As shown in FIG. 4, the stationary blade vane portion 18 is inclined from the upstream side toward the downstream side while twisting rightward with respect to the axial center of the pre-turning stationary blade 14. A space between the adjacent stationary blade blade portions 18 as viewed in the circumferential direction functions as a stationary blade channel 71. The pre-turning stationary blade 14 is fixed to the cylindrical body 13 and does not rotate.

  A moving blade 15 is provided on the downstream side of the pre-turning stator blade 14 with a gap from the pre-turning stator blade 14. The moving blade 15 has a columnar shape, and a plurality of protruding moving blade blade portions 19 protruding in the radially outward direction are provided on the circumferential surface thereof. As shown in FIG. 4, the moving blade blade portion 19 is inclined from the upstream side to the downstream side while being twisted in the left direction with respect to the axial center, contrary to the stationary blade blade portion 18. A space between adjacent blade blades 19 as viewed in the circumferential direction functions as a blade passage 72. The moving blade 15 is supported on a bearing 17 fixed to the cylindrical body 13 through a central shaft 24 substantially parallel to the water supply flow path. The moving blade 15 is rotatable around the central axis 24.

  In the bearing 17, a ring member 21 fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical body 13 and a shaft support portion 22 provided at the center of the ring member 21 are coupled by a connecting member 23 provided radially. It becomes. Since the connection member 23 penetrates without being closed, the flow of water supply inside the cylinder 13 is not hindered.

  A center shaft 24 fixed to the shaft center of the rotor blade 15 is rotatably supported on the shaft support portion 22 of the bearing 17. The tip of the central shaft 24 protrudes from the rotor blade 15 and is fitted into the pre-turning stationary blade 14. The front end portion of the central shaft 24 and the pre-turning stationary blade 14 are not fixed to each other, and the central shaft 24 is rotatable with respect to the pre-turning stationary blade 14 fixed to the cylindrical body 13. Alternatively, both end portions of the center shaft 24 may be fixed to the shaft support portion 22 and the pre-turning stationary blade 14, and the moving blade 15 may be fitted to the center shaft 24 so as to be rotatable.

  A cylindrical magnet M fixed to the rotor blade blade portion 19 so as to surround the rotor blade flow path 72 is accommodated in the large diameter portion 13 b of the cylindrical body 13. In FIG. 4, the inner peripheral surface of the magnet M represented by a two-dot chain line is fixed to a side end surface on the radially outer side of the rotor blade blade portion 19.

  As shown in FIG. 7, N poles and S poles are alternately magnetized along the circumferential direction on the end face of the magnet M in the axial direction.

On the outside of the small diameter portion 13 a of the cylindrical body 13, the stator 9 to face the upstream end surface of the magnet M is disposed. The stator 9 may be disposed to face the downstream end surface of the magnet M, or a pair of stators 9 may be disposed to face both the upstream and downstream end surfaces of the magnet M. Good.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the stator 9 is surrounded by first to third yokes 32 to 34 made of a magnetic material (for example, rolled steel) and the first to third yokes 32 to 34. And a coil 30 arranged in the space. The coil 30 wound in a cylindrical shape has an inner peripheral surface portion, an outer peripheral surface portion, and both end surface portions in the axial direction surrounded by first to third yokes 32 to 34.

  The first yoke 32 has a substantially cylindrical shape disposed on the inner side of the coil 30, and a plurality of pole teeth 32 a are integrally provided radially outward at one end portion in the axial direction. In the first yoke 32, the portion facing the inner peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 and the pole teeth 32a are substantially perpendicular. The pole teeth 32a are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction.

  The second yoke 33 has a substantially cylindrical shape arranged so as to surround the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil 30, and a plurality of pole teeth 33 a are integrally provided radially inward at one end portion in the axial direction. Yes. In the second yoke 33, the portion facing the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 and the pole teeth 33a are substantially perpendicular. The pole teeth 33 a are arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction and are arranged between the pole teeth 32 a of the first yoke 32. That is, the pole teeth 32a of the first yoke 32 and the pole teeth 33a of the second yoke 33 are arranged alternately and spaced apart from each other along the circumferential direction. These pole teeth 32 a and 33 a are opposed to one end surface portion of the coil 30. The pole teeth 32 a and 33 a are opposed to one end surface portion of the coil 30. One end surface portion of the coil 30 is opposed to the end surface of the magnet M with the pole teeth 32a and 33a and the cylindrical body 13 interposed therebetween.

  The third yoke 34 has a ring plate shape facing the other end surface portion of the coil 30, and the other end portions (pole teeth 32 a and 33 a are provided) of the first yoke 32 and the second yoke 33. (The end opposite to the end).

  In the portion of the first yoke 32 facing the inner peripheral surface portion of the coil 30, a counterbore portion 39 that is notched in a concave shape from one end side where the pole teeth 32a are provided to the vicinity of the center in the axial direction is intermittent along the circumferential direction. Is formed. In other words, a portion 33b provided integrally with the pole teeth 32a and facing the inner peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 is intermittently formed along the circumferential direction. The counterbore 39 is intermittently provided in the circumferential direction corresponding to the position of the pole teeth 33 a of the second yoke 33.

  Similarly, in the second yoke 33, a portion facing the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 has a counterbore portion that is notched in a concave shape from one end side where the pole teeth 33a are provided to the vicinity of the center in the axial direction (FIG. 6 shows the inner peripheral surface). However, it is intermittently formed along the circumferential direction. In other words, a portion provided integrally with the pole teeth 33a and facing the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 is intermittently formed along the circumferential direction. The counterbore part of the second yoke 33 is intermittently provided in the circumferential direction corresponding to the position of the pole teeth 32 a of the first yoke 32.

  Next, the operation of the faucet generator and the automatic faucet device according to this embodiment will be described.

  When the user holds his hand under the spout 6 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the sensor 7 senses this, and the control unit 57 opens the electromagnetic valve 8. Thereby, running water is supplied to the inside of the cylindrical body 13 of the faucet generator 11, and the water that has flowed inside the cylindrical body 13 is discharged from the water outlet 6. When the user moves his hand away from the bottom of the spout 6, the solenoid valve 8 is closed and water automatically stops.

  The flowing water that has flowed into the cylindrical body 13 flows on the surface of the conical body of the pre-turning stationary blade 14 and is diffused in the radially outward direction. In the specific examples shown in FIGS. It turns into a swirling flow that swirls in the same direction and flows through the stationary blade flow path 71 between the stationary blade blade portions 18.

  The swirl flow that has flowed through the stationary blade flow path 71 flows into the moving blade flow path 72 and collides with the upper inclined surface of the moving blade blade portion 19. In this specific example, the swirl flow that flows into the blade flow path 72 is a flow swirled in the right direction with respect to the axial center, so that a rightward force acts on the blade blade 19 and the blade 15 Rotate clockwise. Then, the flowing water that has flowed through the moving blade flow path 72 on the inner side of the inner peripheral surface of the magnet M passes through the inside of the bearing 17, passes through the inside of the cylindrical body 13, and reaches the water outlet 6.

  When the moving blade 15 rotates, the magnet M fixed to it also rotates. Since the N pole and the S pole are alternately magnetized along the circumferential direction (rotation direction) as shown in FIG. 7, the end face of the magnet M faces the end face of the magnet M when the magnet M rotates. The polarities of the pole teeth 32a and 33a and the first and second yokes 32 and 33 integrated therewith change. Thereby, the direction of the interlinkage magnetic flux with respect to the coil 30 changes, and an electromotive force is generated in the coil 30 to generate power. After the generated electric power is charged into the charger 56, it is used for driving the electromagnetic valve 8, the sensor 7, and the control unit 57, for example.

  FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional perspective view of a stator according to a comparative example.

  In this comparative example, a portion of the first yoke 132 that faces the inner peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 is continuously formed without interruption in the circumferential direction. Similarly, in the second yoke 133, a portion facing the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil 30 is continuously formed in the circumferential direction without interruption.

  Although the first yoke 132 (including the pole teeth 32a) and the second yoke 133 (including the pole teeth 33a) are magnetized in opposite polarities, the interlinkage magnetic path a surrounding the coil 30 is formed. At this time, in the configuration of the comparative example, the portion of the peripheral surface portion of each yoke 132, 133 where the pole teeth of the other yoke are opposed is magnetized to a polarity opposite to its own polarity (the polarity of the other yoke). It is easy to form a magnetic path b along the peripheral surface of each yoke, and there is a problem that the interlinkage magnetic path a contributing to power generation is weakened and the power generation amount is reduced.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, as described above with reference to FIG. 6, the peripheral surfaces of the yokes 32 and 33 are intermittently counterclockwise in the circumferential direction corresponding to the positions of the pole teeth of the other yoke. By providing the portion 39, the yokes 32 and 33 are magnetically insulated in the circumferential direction. For this reason, the magnetic path formed along the peripheral surface of each yoke 32 and 33 is suppressed, and it can prevent that the linkage magnetic path a which contributes to the electric power generation of the coil 30 weakens. As a result, the amount of power generation can be improved.

  By changing the depth of the counterbore 39 (the axial length from the end where the pole teeth 32a and 33a are provided) to 0 (mm), 2 (mm), 5 (mm), and 10 (mm), The power generation and coil efficiency were simulated. Here, the coil efficiency represents the ratio (%) of the output (power generation amount) to the input (torque of the magnet M × rotational speed). In addition, the axial direction dimension of the whole stator 9 was 10.5 (mm). The depth of the spot facing portion 39 is 0 (mm), which is a comparative example shown in FIG. 10 in which the spot facing portion 39 is not provided.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing the relationship between the depth of the counterbore 39 and the amount of power generation. The horizontal axis represents the depth (mm) of the spot facing portion 39, and the vertical axis represents the power generation amount (mW).
FIG. 9 is a graph showing the relationship between the depth of the spot facing portion 39 and the coil efficiency. The horizontal axis represents the depth (mm) of the spot portion 39, and the vertical axis represents the coil efficiency (%).

  From these results, the power generation amount can be increased by increasing the depth of the counterbore portion 39. Furthermore, by increasing the depth of the counterbore 39, the coil efficiency can be improved. In particular, in the embodiment in which the hydraulic energy used for power generation is relatively small, such as an automatic faucet that emphasizes the water-saving effect. Is very effective.

  In the case of an automatic faucet equipped with a generator, it is necessary to incorporate a solenoid valve and a generator, so the generator needs to be made compact. And in order to make a generator compact, it is necessary to improve the efficiency of a generator, and the effect of providing a counterbore part like this specific example is large. In addition, it is effective to provide a counterbore portion in order to prevent efficiency reduction due to heat generation.

  The counterbore part 39 may be formed over the entire axial direction, but in this case, the yokes 32 and 33 are divided according to the number of pole teeth. As in this specific example, it is desirable to keep the counterbore part 39 halfway in the axial direction so that each of the yokes 32 and 33 is not scattered.

  Further, in this specific example, since the stator 9 is disposed opposite to the magnet M in the axial direction (axial arrangement), compared to the case where the stator 9 is disposed opposite to the outer diameter of the magnet M (radial arrangement). Thus, the radial dimension can be reduced. Furthermore, the generator of this specific example is provided with the moving blade 15 with the rotating shaft 24 substantially parallel to the flowing water direction, and the magnet M has a diameter of the moving blade 15 with the moving blade 15 and the rotation center aligned. The outer blade 15 is a so-called axial flow generator that is rotated by the force of the water flow that flows inside the magnet M. Therefore, using the impeller arranged with the rotation axis substantially perpendicular to the flowing water direction, the magnet connected to the rotation shaft of the impeller and rotating together with the impeller, and the coil facing the outer peripheral surface of the magnet, The radial dimension can be reduced as compared with the water wheel type structure provided so as to protrude to the outside of the flow path. Thus, since the structure of this specific example is advantageous for reducing the radial dimension of the generator, for example, even if it is incorporated in the cylindrical water discharger 3b shown in FIG. 2, the water discharger 3b is thin. Does not spoil the clean design. In addition, since the stator 9 is not disposed outside the rotor blade 15 in the radial direction, the radial dimension of the rotor blade 15 can be increased, and the power generation efficiency can be improved.

  As described above, in the “axial arrangement”, the magnet diameter can be made larger than that in the “radial arrangement”, and as a rule, a larger amount of magnetic flux can be taken. However, it is greatly affected by the short circuit of the magnetic flux. Therefore, by providing the counterbore described above, a short circuit of the magnetic flux can be prevented, and the amount of power generation can be increased. Moreover, since heat can be radiated by the counterbore, energy loss due to heat generation of the coil can be prevented.

  The embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present invention is not limited to them, and various modifications can be made based on the technical idea of the present invention.

  The faucet fitting of the present invention is suitably used in a living space. Examples of usage purposes include kitchen faucet fittings, living-dining faucet fittings, shower faucet fittings, toilet faucet fittings, toilet faucet fittings, and the like. In addition to automatic faucet fittings using human body detection sensors, for example, one-touch faucet fittings by turning on / off a manual switch, fixed-quantity water faucet fittings that stop water by counting the flow rate, and stop when a set time has elapsed. It can also be applied to water faucet fittings. The generated electric power may be used for, for example, light-up, generation of electrolytic functional water such as alkaline ion water and silver ion-containing water, flow rate display (metering), temperature display, and voice guide.

  In the faucet fitting according to the present embodiment, the discharge flow rate is set to, for example, 100 liters per minute or less, desirably 30 liters per minute or less. In particular, it is desirable that the toilet faucet is set to 5 liters per minute or less. In addition, when the discharge flow rate is relatively high, such as a toilet faucet, the water flow flowing from the water supply pipe to the generator 11 can be branched to adjust the flow rate flowing through the generator 11 to 30 liters per minute or less. desirable. This is because if the entire water flow from the water supply pipe is flowed to the generator 11, the rotational speed of the rotor blade 15 increases, and there is a concern that noise and shaft wear may increase, and even if the rotational speed increases. This is because if the rotational speed is not less than the appropriate value, energy loss due to eddy currents and coil heat occurs, and the amount of power generation does not increase. The water supply pressure of the water pipe to which the faucet fitting is attached may be a low water pressure of about 0.05 (MPa) in Japan, for example.

It is a schematic cross section showing the inside of the faucet generator concerning the embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic diagram showing the example of attachment of the automatic faucet device with a generator which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of the automatic water faucet device. It is a perspective view of the pre-turning stationary blade, the moving blade, and the bearing in the faucet generator according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of the stator in the generator for the faucets. It is a cross-sectional perspective view of the stator in the faucet generator. It is a perspective view of the magnet in the generator for faucets. It is a graph showing the relationship between the depth of a counterbore part and the electric power generation amount. It is a graph showing the relationship between the depth of a counterbore part and coil efficiency. It is a cross-sectional perspective view of the stator which concerns on a comparative example.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 ... Automatic faucet device, 7 ... Sensor, 8 ... Solenoid valve, 9 ... Stator, 11 ... Generator for faucet, 14 ... Pre-turning stationary blade, 15 ... Rotor blade, 17 ... Bearing, 18 ... Stator blade blade part , 19 ... blade blade part, 24 ... central axis, 30 ... coil, 32 ... first yoke, 32a ... pole tooth, 33 ... second yoke, 33a ... pole tooth, 34 ... third yoke, 39 ... counterbore part, 55 ... constant flow valve, 56 ... charger, 57 ... control unit, 71 ... stationary blade flow path, 72 ... moving blade flow path, M ... magnet

Claims (2)

A moving blade provided in the water supply channel so as to be rotatable about a central axis substantially parallel to the water supply channel;
A cylindrical shape in which N poles and S poles are alternately magnetized along the circumferential direction, and a magnet that can rotate integrally with the moving blade;
A coil wound in a cylindrical shape so as to surround the water supply flow path, and a coil provided facing the end face in the axial direction of the magnet;
A yoke having a plurality of pole teeth arranged apart from each other along the circumferential direction between the end face of the magnet and the coil, and a yoke made of a magnetic material provided to surround the coil;
With
The pole teeth protrude alternately toward the radially outer side and the radially inner side from the side facing the inner peripheral surface part and the side facing the outer peripheral surface part of the coil, respectively.
In the yoke, a portion facing the inner peripheral surface portion and the outer peripheral surface portion of the coil is cut from one end side where the pole teeth are provided along a direction in which water flows in a portion surrounded by the coil of the water supply channel. A faucet generator characterized by providing a missing spot. The magnet is provided radially outside the moving blade with its rotation center coinciding with the rotation center of the moving blade,
2. The faucet generator according to claim 1, wherein the rotor blades are rotated by the force of a water flow that flows inward from an inner peripheral surface of the magnet.

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