JP4987102B2 - Dehumidifier - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a dehumidifier equipped with a dehumidifying or drying device, and more particularly, to operation control of an outlet, control of the shape of an outlet, and control of a dehumidifying operation.

  Some conventional dehumidifiers adjust the indoor humidity by performing a dehumidifying operation by determining the low humidity maintenance time based on the temperature and relative humidity of the room air (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Moreover, it is shown that adjusting the relative humidity of the atmosphere at 40 to 60% has an effect of suppressing mold growth (see, for example, Patent Document 2 and Patent Document 3).

JP 2001-248880 A (summary, FIG. 6) JP 7-275329 A (page 3) JP 2001-208401 A (page 3)

  In conventional dehumidifiers, the low humidity maintenance time is determined based on the temperature and relative humidity of the room air, but in environments where mold tends to grow, such as in bathrooms, such as in bathrooms where water droplets tend to accumulate, it may be long. Even if the time water droplets remain and the relative humidity in the air decreases, there remains a place where the humidity does not decrease locally, and it is difficult to sufficiently suppress the generation of mold.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a dehumidifier capable of sufficiently suppressing the generation of mold.

The dehumidifier according to the present invention includes a room air inlet and a process air outlet, a mechanism for changing the direction of blowing the process air, a function of reducing the relative humidity by absorbing or heating the sucked air, and room temperature. The temperature detection means for detecting the humidity, the humidity detection means for detecting the humidity, the process air blowing range is changed during operation according to room temperature or humidity, and the operation is automatically started or stopped based on the room temperature and humidity in dehumidifier and control means for said control means comprises a driving mode for setting the shortest time of the dehumidifying operation, continued dehumidifying operation to below humidity humidity is preset humidity below the set humidity Is maintained for a predetermined time or more, and a function of automatically stopping after the shortest time has elapsed since the start of the dehumidifying operation is provided.

  According to the present invention, the blowing direction of the dehumidified air (process air) is changed by switching the air blowing range according to the room temperature or humidity, and the room air, ceiling, wall surface, or floor surface is changed over time. Depending on the state, the process air is blown in the direction to be dried, and the room can be dried in a short time. For this reason, it is possible to provide a dehumidifier capable of sufficiently suppressing the occurrence of mold.

It is an external view (front) of a dehumidifier. It is an external view (back surface) of a dehumidifier. It is the schematic which shows the basic structure of a dehumidifier. It is sectional drawing of the cold wind side (evaporator side) air path of a dehumidifier. It is sectional drawing of the warm air side (condenser side) air path of a dehumidifier. It is a block diagram which shows the control system of a dehumidifier. It is the schematic which shows the mechanism of a blower outlet. It is a schematic diagram which shows the operation | movement range in the case of reciprocating the whole operable range of a blower outlet (air supply range), and the position of the upper and lower limits. It is a schematic diagram which shows the operation | movement range (air supply range) in the case of reciprocating in the direction close | similar to the floor surface of the operable range of a blower outlet, and its upper / lower limit position. It is a flowchart in the Example of operation control. It is the schematic of the Example of operation control. It is a figure which shows the correlation of relative humidity and mold growth. It is the schematic of the form at the time of normal operation of a baffle plate. It is the schematic of the state which moved the baffle plate. It is sectional drawing of the front blower outlet of the state which moved the wind guide plate to the position which guides the wind to a floor direction. It is a schematic diagram which shows the ventilation range of a baffle plate.

  FIG. 1 is an external view seen from the front side of a dehumidifier with a cold air function (hereinafter referred to as dehumidifier) according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an external view seen from the back side. These are the structural views which each removed the exterior member of the front and side of a dehumidifier, and showed the internal structure.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the dehumidifier 1 has a front air outlet 10 formed on the front side (front side) of the upper portion thereof, a cold air outlet 10 a on the left half and a hot air outlet 10 b on the right half. It has become. An operation unit 12a and a display unit 12b are provided on the back side of the front air outlet 10 respectively. Moreover, the front blower outlet 10 is provided with a louver 13 that automatically and freely opens and closes the louver 13 and rotates the louver 13 to adjust the opening area of the front blower outlet 10 to change the blowout range ( For details, see FIG.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the dehumidifier 1 is provided with a rear air outlet 14, a cold air inlet 15 and a hot air inlet 16 on the back side.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the dehumidifier 1 includes an evaporator 20, a compressor 21, a condenser 22, and an expansion valve (not shown), which are connected by a refrigerant pipe (not shown). They are connected to constitute a refrigeration cycle (see FIG. 6). The evaporator 20 is disposed so as to face the cold air inlet 15 and cools and dehumidifies the indoor air taken in from the cold air inlet 15. The compressor 21 is disposed on the bottom side of the dehumidifier 1, compresses the refrigerant from the evaporator 20, and sends it out to the condenser 22. The condenser 22 is disposed so as to face the hot air side suction port 16 and heats indoor air taken in from the hot air side suction port 16. A water storage tank 23 is disposed below the condenser 22, and the water generated when the indoor air is dehumidified by the evaporator 20 is stored in the water storage tank 23. A casing 25 containing an evaporator-side blower fan (hereinafter referred to as a blower fan) 24 (see FIG. 4 to be described later) is disposed on the front side of the evaporator 20. After taking in via the side inlet 15 and the evaporator 20, it sends out to the cold wind blower outlet 10a by making the casing 25 into an air path (refer FIG. 4 mentioned later). A condenser-side blower fan (hereinafter referred to as a blower fan) 26 is disposed on the front side of the condenser 22. It sends out to the blower outlet 10b (refer FIG. 5 mentioned later). In this way, the cool air path and the warm air path are arranged side by side.

  FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the cold air side air passage of the dehumidifier 1. In addition to the blower fan 24, the casing 25 includes a blower fan drive motor (hereinafter referred to as a drive motor) 27 for driving the blower fan 24. When the drive motor 27 is driven, the blower fan 24 rotates, the blower fan takes in the room air through the cold air inlet 15 and the evaporator 20, and is cooled and dehumidified by the evaporator 20. The air is sent out to the cold air outlet 10a using the casing 25 as an air passage.

  FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the warm air side air passage of the dehumidifier. The blower fan 26 is provided with a blower fan drive motor (hereinafter referred to as a drive motor) 28 on the rear side. The air taken in through the port 16 and the condenser 22 and heated by the condenser 22 is sent out to the hot air outlet 10b.

  Note that an air path switching mechanism (not shown) is built in the upper portion of the dehumidifier 1, and the rear air outlet 14 is connected to the cold air When only the cold air is blown out from the outlet 10a, it functions as a hot air outlet, and when only the hot air is blown out from the hot air outlet 10b, it functions as a cold air outlet. In a normal dehumidifying operation, both cold air and hot air are blown out from the front outlet 10.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control system of the dehumidifier 1.
The dehumidifier 1 includes a control unit 30 composed of a microcomputer or the like. On the input side of the control unit 30, an operation unit 12a, temperature detection means 31 for detecting room temperature, and humidity detection for detecting indoor humidity. Means 32 are connected to each other, and perform various arithmetic processes based on the operation signal of the operation unit 12a, room temperature, and humidity. The temperature detection means 31 and the humidity detection means 32 are attached to appropriate parts of the dehumidifier 1 main body. The output side of the control unit 30 is connected to the refrigeration cycle 33, the drive motor 27, the drive motor 28, the louver drive motor 34 (see FIG. 7), and the display unit 12b, each composed of the compressor 20 and the like. .

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing the appearance of a single louver 13 and the mounting position of the louver drive motor 34. The louver 13 is rotated about the length direction by a louver drive motor 34, is rotated in a range as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and the blowing range can be arbitrarily changed. In addition, the example of FIG. 8 is an example which made the ventilation range wide angle (110 degree | times), and the example of FIG. 9 was front (60 degree | times).

  As described above, the blowing direction of the dehumidified air can be changed in an arbitrary direction by rotating the louver 13 to change the blowing range. The driving form can also be arbitrarily selected, and it can be fixed and blown in a certain direction or can be reciprocated periodically within a certain angle range. In general, if the upper limit position and the lower limit position set by the control are reciprocated several times a minute, the indoor air is well agitated to increase the moisture absorption effect. In addition, by setting the air blowing range to a wide angle (110 degrees), it is possible to uniformly apply dehumidified air to clothes that have been dried over a wide range, so that the drying time can be shortened. Further, when the floor surface is dried, dehumidified air can be applied to the floor surface by setting the air blowing range forward (60 degrees), so that the drying time can be shortened.

  Next, explanation will be given on the operation of the mold prevention operation for the purpose of suppressing the growth of mold, which assumes the main use of the dehumidifier 1 of the present embodiment, particularly around the water such as the bathroom.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the control operation. The operation will be described with reference to these drawings.
When the plug 1a (see FIG. 2) of the dehumidifier 1 is inserted into the outlet, the operation starts, the temperature detecting means 31 and the humidity detecting means 32 detect the room temperature and the humidity, respectively, and the control unit 30 detects the detection. Capture room temperature and humidity information. The control unit 30 determines whether or not an operation switch (not shown) of the operation unit 12a has been input (S13). If it is determined that the operation switch has been input, it determines selection of an operation mode (S14). For example, when the operation mode other than the mold prevention operation is set (S15), the operation mode is processed (S16). When the operation mode is set to the mold prevention operation mode (S17), it is determined whether the room temperature is room temperature> 20 ° C. (S18). When the room temperature> 20 ° C., the shortest operation time is determined. Set to 4 hours and start the mold prevention operation (S19). When the room temperature is not higher than 20 ° C. (when the temperature is 20 ° C. or lower), the shortest operation time is set to 6 hours, and the mold prevention operation is started (S20). This mold prevention operation may be performed by either cold air from the evaporator 20, hot air from the condenser 22, or both.

  The control unit 30 determines whether or not the humidity is <50% (S21). If the humidity is not <50% (when the humidity is 50% or more), the swing angle of the louver 13 is set to a wide angle (110 degrees). Then, the louver drive motor 34 is driven (S22). If the humidity is less than 50% (if the humidity is less than 50%), the louver drive motor 34 is driven with the swing angle of the louver 13 set to the front (60 degrees, see FIG. 9) (S23).

  Next, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the conditions of both the elapsed time after the humidity reaches less than 50%> 4 hours and the elapsed time from the start of operation> the shortest operating time are satisfied (S24), When the condition is not satisfied, the process returns to the above process (S21), and the processes (S21) to (S24) are repeated. When the condition is satisfied, the operation is stopped (S25).

  FIG. 11 is a timing chart showing how the humidity is changed by the control process of FIG. When the above mold prevention operation is performed to prevent the occurrence of mold in a high humidity space such as a bathroom, the relative humidity of the bathroom and the dressing room exceeds 80% after bathing. There are many cases. When the operation is started in such a state, the louver 13 swings (reciprocates) at a wide angle (110 degrees) (FIG. 8), stirs the indoor air and efficiently dehumidifies it, and removes dehumidified air from the ceiling and walls. Removes water droplets adhering to the ceiling or wall. When the humidity decreases with time and becomes less than 50%, the louver 13 swings forward (60 degrees) (FIG. 9), and the air blowing range is switched to a range close to the floor surface to dry the floor surface. Do. When the humidity is less than 50% for 4 hours and the minimum operation time (for example, 4 hours) is exceeded, the mold prevention operation is stopped.

  FIG. 12 is a graph showing test results comparing the growth rate of mold, that is, the length of mycelia when spores are exposed to a certain atmosphere for a certain period of time. As shown in the results of the figure, if the operation of maintaining the relative humidity of 50% or less for at least 4 hours is performed once a day, in the case of high humidity, for example, water drops are always on the floor surface of the bathroom. Compared to the remaining state, the mold growth rate can be suppressed to about 1/5.

In the above description, the example of using the humidity as a reference for switching the swing angle of the louver 13 from the wide angle (110 degrees) to the front (60 degrees) has been described, but the switching is performed based on room temperature instead of humidity. Anyway. For example, when the room temperature is high, it is assumed that the humidity is low, and switching is performed in the same manner as in the case of the above humidity.
Further, in order to switch the swing angle of the louver 13 from the wide angle (110 degrees) to the front (60 degrees), it may be switched at the time when a preset operation time is reached instead of the set humidity.
Moreover, although the example which made the swing angle of the louver 13 into 2 steps | paragraphs was demonstrated, the change of a ventilation range may be made small and it may be set as the combination of the control which dries each of a ceiling, a wall surface, and a floor surface.
Further, the example of the humidity of less than 50% (S21) has been described as a reference for switching the swing angle of the louver 13. However, the same effect can be obtained even if this is an arbitrary set value of less than 60% humidity.
Moreover, although the example (S24) which continues the state of less than 50% of humidity for 4 hours or more was demonstrated, humidity may be made into the arbitrary setting values of less than 60% of humidity, and you may make it drive time more than 3 hours.
The shortest operation time is optimal if the dehumidifying capacity of the dehumidifier is about 10 L per day (S19, S20), but is not limited to this value. It is desirable to set the optimum value according to the dehumidifying capacity and the blown air volume.
Moreover, although the example of two types (4 hours, 6 hours) showed the shortest driving time in the above-mentioned example, two or more arbitrary shortest times corresponding to room temperature are provided, and it switches suitably according to room temperature. You may do it.
If the dehumidifier is a refrigerant type dehumidifier as in the present embodiment and has a function of separately blowing the evaporator passing air that is cold air and the condenser passing air that is hot air, The switching of the range may be an operation combining the switching of the cold air outlet 10a and the hot air outlet 10b. In that case, in the second half of the operation (operation with a humidity of less than 50% in the example of FIG. 10), it is possible to perform an operation of blowing warm air to the floor surface to further promote evaporation of water droplets.
Further, the means for changing the air blowing range in the floor direction is not limited to the change in the operating angle of the louver 13, and the main body of the dehumidifier 1 may be provided with an air passage dedicated to lower blowing, and the air passage may be switched.
In addition, the dehumidifying method of the dehumidifier is not limited to the vapor compression method using chlorofluorocarbon, but may be a desiccant method using a moisture absorbing element such as a zeolite element, or a method using a Peltier element, which is limited to the dehumidifying method. is not. In addition, the present invention is similarly applied to a device having a function of lowering relative humidity, such as a hot air device including a heating device of an electric heater (ceramic heater or the like).

  Further, the mechanism for changing the blowing range of the dehumidified air (process air) is not limited to the form of the louver 13 shown in FIG. 7, and the form related thereto can be appropriately modified. An example will be described with reference to FIGS.

  13-16 is explanatory drawing which shows the example which provided the baffle plate 40 which has the same curved surface as the louver 13 on the upper surface of the louver 13 so that sliding was possible. The air guide plate 40 is in a state of being constantly overlaid on the louver 13 and constitutes a design surface component of the dehumidifier 1. When the air guide plate 40 is slid and pulled forward from the louver 13, even if the drive amount of the louver drive motor 34 is the same as in FIG. 9, for example, as shown in FIG. The dehumidified wind reaches the

  In addition, the air guide plate 40 may be manually fixed as shown in the figure, and the user may select the position of the air guide plate 40 before starting operation, but this mechanism can be automatically performed. A structure (not shown) may be used. If it does in that way, when changing the ventilation range, it becomes possible to increase the ventilation range to a floor surface direction by moving the baffle plate 40 simultaneously, and to dry in a shorter time. Further, the shape of the air guide plate 40 is not limited to the shape along the design surface, and may be a shape giving priority to further expanding the blowing range.

  As described above, since the dehumidifier of the present embodiment is configured and operates, the following effects can be obtained.

  According to the dehumidifier according to the present embodiment, the indoor air inlet (cold air side inlet 15, hot air side inlet 16), the processing air outlet (front outlet 10), and the direction of processing air blowing A mechanism (louver 13) that automatically changes the air, a function to reduce the relative humidity by absorbing or heating the sucked air (evaporator 20, condenser 22, etc.), temperature detecting means 31 for detecting the room temperature, and humidity And a control unit 30 for automatically starting or stopping the operation based on the room temperature and the humidity, and changing the blowing range of the processing air during the operation based on the room temperature and the humidity. I am doing so. For this reason, it blows in the direction which should be dried according to the indoor air which changes with progress of time, and the dry state of a ceiling, a wall surface, and a floor surface, and can dry a room | chamber interior in a short time. For example, it can be dried in a short time by increasing the humidity of the air and removing the water droplets by sending the dehumidified dry air to a place where water droplets accumulate such as the floor and sending mold to the place where mold is likely to occur. As a result, a dehumidifier having a high mold suppression effect can be obtained.

  In addition, according to the dehumidifier according to the present embodiment, the air blowing range is switched according to room temperature or humidity, and after reaching a preset set humidity, the humidity below that value is maintained for a certain period of time. The dehumidifying operation is automatically stopped. Therefore, the room is dried and the low-humidity air necessary to reduce the growth rate of mold mycelia is maintained for a certain period of time. There is no need for dehumidifying operation.

  In addition to the reciprocation of the entire range in which the mechanism (for example, the louver 13) that changes the blowing range of the processing air during the dehumidifying operation, the blowing range of the processing air (opening surface line of the front outlet 10) Adopted a structure that can be operated by switching appropriately the operating range facing the ceiling and the operating range facing the floor, etc., which is narrower than the entire range, appropriate for the indoor conditions that change over time of dehumidification operation By blowing air in any direction, the room can be dried in a short time.

  In addition, the blasting range of the processing air includes the entire range (see FIG. 8) in which the mechanism (for example, the louver 13) can blow, and the range in which the mechanism (louver 13) is close to the floor (see FIG. 9). When blowing air over the entire range, the room air is largely agitated to prevent the temperature and humidity from being biased depending on the location in the room, so that the temperature and humidity of the processing air are substantially uniform and the efficiency of the drying process is increased. At the same time, the air can be blown in a wide angle direction to increase the wind speed in the direction of the ceiling or wall surface, and heat exchange or evaporation in the vicinity of the ceiling or wall can be promoted. When the air blowing range is changed in the direction of the floor surface, it is possible to concentrate air on the floor surface where water droplets are more easily collected than the ceiling or wall surface, and drying can be performed sufficiently.

  In addition, at the start of dehumidifying operation, the humidity of the room air is lowered and air drops are easily dropped.By blowing air toward the ceiling or wall surface, dehumidification and water droplet removal are efficiently performed. After the passage of time, the relative humidity in the air has decreased, so there is no need to stir the air widely, so the water blowing area tends to accumulate more easily than the ceiling or wall, and the blast range is changed in the direction of the floor, It is possible to sufficiently dry the floor and shorten the drying time.

  Further, as a means for changing the air blowing range more greatly, the shape of the air outlet formed by the front air outlet 10 and the louver 13 is changed manually or automatically (see FIG. 16 etc.), and the shaft position is fixed. In the structure, the upper or lower side of the air blowing range is enlarged, or the shape of the air outlet is arbitrarily changed manually or automatically according to the direction to be dried or the shape of the room. A corresponding air blowing range can be obtained.

  As a means for changing the blowing direction from the outlet, the structure is such that the plate-like member (see FIG. 13 and the like) along the design surface can be moved. Even during the operation for expanding the range, the parts move along the design surface, so that the blowing range can be changed without impairing the design of the product.

  Further, the means for changing the shape of the air outlet is a shape that can expand the air blowing range in the floor direction, so that the front side of the main body, which is difficult to blow with a conventional general dehumidifier, is used. The air can be blown to the floor surface close to, and there is no need to adjust the installation position of the dehumidifier 1 in accordance with the direction of the floor surface to be dried, and operation is possible even in a narrow installation place.

  In addition, the structure for changing the shape of the air outlet is automatically changed according to a preset temperature, humidity, or elapsed operation time, so that it does not need to be adjusted manually by the user, depending on the indoor environment. Can operate properly.

  In addition, the setting value when switching the air blowing range is set to a value of less than 60% relative humidity, and after drying the indoor air, the ceiling, and the wall surface, the processing air having a relative humidity of less than 60% is concentrated and blown in the floor direction. Thus, it is possible to suppress mold growth on the floor surface where water droplets are liable to accumulate and mold is likely to occur.

  Furthermore, after the preset relative humidity is less than 60%, the maintenance time is set to be longer than 3 hours, and the automatic stop is performed after the set time is maintained. Even if it is not maintained continuously, it is possible to obtain an energy-saving and user-friendly dehumidifier that suppresses the growth of mold by setting the minimum dehumidifying operation time.

  In addition, by providing a minimum operation time during dehumidification operation in a place where condensation or water droplets are likely to occur, a drying effect can be obtained regardless of the environment without the user adjusting the operation time.

  In addition, the minimum operation time is set to multiple values according to the room temperature, and by switching the value according to the room temperature, the user can adjust the operation time to the room temperature at that time without adjusting the operation time. A suitable and constant operation can be performed and a more stable drying effect can be obtained.

  In addition, when the room temperature is low, the minimum operation time is longer than that when the room temperature is high, so that a sufficient drying effect can be obtained even when the room temperature is low.

  The minimum operation time is 4 hours when the room temperature is 20 ° C or higher, and 6 hours when the room temperature is less than 20 ° C. Can be dried to obtain a sufficient drying effect.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Dehumidifier, 10 Front blower outlet, 10a Cold wind blower outlet, 10b Hot air blower outlet, 12a Operation part, 12b Display part, 13 Louver, 14 Back blower outlet, 15 Cold wind side inlet, 16 Hot air side inlet, 20 Evaporation , 21 Compressor, 22 Condenser, 23 Water storage tank, 24 Blower fan, 25 Casing, 26 Blower fan, 27 Drive motor, 28 Drive motor, 30 Control unit, 31 Temperature detection means, 32 Humidity detection means, 33 Refrigeration cycle , 34 louver drive motor, 40 air guide plate.

Claims (4)

An indoor air inlet and a treated air outlet;
A mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processing air;
A function of reducing the relative humidity by absorbing or heating the inhaled air;
Temperature detection means for detecting room temperature;
Humidity detecting means for detecting humidity;
In a dehumidifier comprising a control means for changing the blowing range of the processing air during operation according to room temperature or humidity, and automatically starting or stopping the operation based on the room temperature and humidity.
The control means includes an operation mode for setting the shortest time of the dehumidifying operation,
A function that continues dehumidifying operation until the humidity falls below a preset humidity , maintains the humidity below the set humidity for a predetermined time or more, and automatically stops after the shortest time has elapsed after starting the dehumidifying operation. A dehumidifier characterized by comprising:   2. The dehumidifier according to claim 1, wherein in the operation mode, the shortest time of the dehumidifying operation is set according to a range of room temperature.   The dehumidifier according to claim 2, wherein the shortest time of the dehumidifying operation is set to be longer at a low temperature than at a normal temperature. The dehumidifier according to claim 3, wherein the shortest time for the dehumidifying operation is 4 hours at 20 ° C or more and 6 hours at less than 20 ° C.

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