JP5869967B2 - Steam sterilizer - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a steam sterilizer used to sterilize an object to be sterilized such as a medical instrument.

  Conventionally, as this type of steam sterilizer, by providing an electromagnetic induction heating means (electromagnetic induction coil) for heating from the outside on the outside of the bottom of a sterilization tank in which a predetermined amount of water is stored, Even if water containing hardness such as calcium ion or magnesium ion is used, the scale adheres only to the bottom wall surface in the sterilization tank. However, the electromagnetic induction heating means can be reliably prevented from being damaged by overheating, the scale can be removed easily, and even when cleaning, there is nothing that hinders the cleaning work such as a heater. Can be easily performed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2001-245959 A

However, in such a conventional steam sterilizer, since a large amount of scale adheres to the bottom wall surface in the tank, the cleaning work is still necessary even if the cleaning work is easy. Could not produce steam, and there was a problem that the operation rate decreased.
Since the electromagnetic induction coil is directly attached to the outside of the bottom of the tank in place of the electric heater, there is a problem that not only the entire tank is increased in size but also the manufacturing cost is increased.

  An object of the present invention is to address such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a steam sterilizer with a simple structure and a very small amount of scale attached.

In order to achieve such an object, the present invention provides a chamber for sterilizing a housed object to be sterilized under high temperature steam, a boiler for generating the high temperature steam by energization of an electric heater, and a certain amount of water in the boiler. A water supply pump for supplying water, a drainage on-off valve for discharging hot water in the boiler to the outside, the electric heater, the water supply pump, and the drainage on-off valve arranged so as to be in contact with the water in the boiler Control means for controlling the operation of the wastewater, and the control means leaves the on-off valve for drainage in the boiler after the sterilization of the sterilized material by the high-temperature steam generated by the electric heater is completed. The hot water is controlled so that only a part thereof is discharged, and the water supply pump is controlled so that a certain amount of water is stored in the boiler.

In the present invention having the above-described features, after the sterilization of the article to be sterilized, the control means controls the drain on-off valve to discharge only a part of the hot water remaining in the boiler. , Scale production substances such as calcium, magnesium and silica contained in the hot water stored in the boiler are reduced, and only the amount of hot water discharged is replenished by the feed water pump. The amount decreases.
Therefore, it is possible to provide a steam sterilizer with a simple structure and a very small amount of scale attached.
As a result, since the heat transfer from the electric heater to the water is not hindered, a decrease in the amount of steam generated and damage due to overheating of the electric heater can be prevented over a long period of time, and safety and economy can be improved.
Moreover, compared with the conventional thing with which a large amount of scale adheres to the bottom wall surface in a tank, the frequency | count of cleaning of a scale reduces sharply and it can improve an operation rate by that much.
Furthermore, since an electric heater is used, the entire tank does not increase in size as compared with the conventional one in which the electromagnetic induction coil is directly attached to the outside of the tank, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced and the electric heater is used. There is also an advantage that a conventional steam sterilizer can be easily modified.

1 is a structural diagram of a piping system showing an overall configuration of a steam sterilizer according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an external appearance perspective view, (a) is a perspective view of the whole, (b) is a partial perspective view of the state which opened the cover. It is a time chart at the time of normal operation.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the steam sterilizer A according to the embodiment of the present invention is for sterilizing an object to be sterilized (not shown) contained in the main body cabinet 10 under high-temperature steam. The main component includes a chamber 1, a boiler 2 for generating high-temperature steam, and a drain tank 3 for discharging hot water from the chamber 1 and hot water from the boiler 2. If necessary, an earthquake sensing device 4 can also be provided.
Furthermore, the control means 5 for operating-controlling the boiler 2 etc. is provided.
A control panel 11 is provided on the front surface of the main body cabinet 10.

The chamber 1 has, for example, a sterilization chamber 1a for placing an object to be sterilized such as a medical instrument, and a lid 1b that covers an inlet opening of the sterilization chamber 1a, and high-temperature steam enters the sterilization chamber 1a from a boiler chamber 2B described later. Supplied.
As a specific example of the chamber 1, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 (b), it is preferably formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape, and a disc-shaped lid 1b is attached to the opening thereof so that it can be opened and closed. .
Although not shown as another example, the opening of the chamber 1 and the lid 1b can be formed in a rectangular shape or other shapes.

The chamber 1 is provided with an open / close valve 1c for introducing outside air. The sterilization chamber 1a is provided with an absolute pressure sensor S1 and a three-way valve 1d.
Further, the chamber 1 is provided with an on-off valve 1e for exhaust, an on-off valve 1f for emergency exhaust, a vacuum pump 3a, and the like.
An operation handle 12 is provided on the lid 1b.

The boiler 2 has a steam generator 2A and a boiler chamber 2B.
The steam generator 2A communicates with a water supply source 2E such as a water supply via a water supply pump 2C and a water storage tank (water supply tank) 2D, and tap water is vaporized from the water supply source 2E and the water storage tank 2D by the operation of the water supply pump 2C. A fixed amount is supplied into the generator 2A.
An electric heater 2a is provided inside the steam generator 2A. The electric heater 2a is temperature-controlled by the control means 5 described later, heats tap water or the like supplied from the water supply source 2E to create high-temperature steam, and supplies the steam from the boiler chamber 2B to the sterilization chamber 1a of the chamber 1. It is configured.

The boiler chamber 2B may be configured only by the internal space of the steam generator 2A, or may be configured by the internal space of the jacket 2F provided separately from the internal space of the steam generator 2A and the interior of the steam generator 2A. preferable.
The jacket 2F is formed so as to cover the periphery of the chamber 1, and is connected by piping so that the internal space thereof has the same pressure as the internal space of the steam generator 2A, and the high-temperature steam created in the internal space of the steam generator 2A Is supplied to the surrounding space of the sterilization chamber 1a, so that the sterilization chamber 1a is kept warm and the drying effect is enhanced.

Further, the boiler chamber 2B has an air vent opening / closing valve 2b for exhausting the internal air of the boiler chamber 2B in accordance with the temperature change therein.
The air vent on / off valve 2b includes a temperature signal output from the temperature sensor S2 and an electromagnetic valve that is controlled by a control means 5 described later.
The temperature sensor S2 is provided in the inner space of the jacket 2F or a pipe connected to the jacket 2F, measures the temperature in the jacket 2F or in the pipe connected to the jacket 2F, and outputs it to the control means 5 described later.
More specifically, at the start of operation (preparation step described later), does the air vent on-off valve 2b continue to open until the temperature sensor S2 reaches a preset valve closing temperature (about 90 to 95 ° C.)? Alternatively, by continuing the valve opening for a predetermined time (about 3 minutes) after reaching the valve closing temperature, the internal air of the jacket 2F is mainly exhausted to the drainage tank 3 or the outside, and the inside of the jacket 2F Temperature unevenness is prevented from occurring in the space.

On the pipe line connecting the jacket 2F and the chamber 1, an on / off valve 2c for steam supply including an electromagnetic valve for supplying high temperature steam from the jacket 2F is provided.
Further, the steam generator 2A is provided with a pipe line connected to the drainage tank 3, and an electromagnetic valve for discharging hot water accumulated in the steam generator 2A or the like to the drainage tank 3 in the middle of the pipe line. An on-off valve 2d for drainage composed of, for example, is provided.
On-off valve 2d for drainage is discharged from boiler room 2B (inside steam generator 2A) of boiler 2 at a predetermined timing excluding the sterilization process of the object to be sterilized by electric heater 2a of boiler 2 by control means 5 described later. The operation is controlled to discharge a predetermined amount of hot water remaining there.
The water supply pump 2C supplies, by the control means 5 to be described later, an amount of water corresponding to the amount of water consumed due to the production of high-temperature steam created by the electric heater 2a and the amount discharged by the on-off valve 2d for drainage. The operation is controlled so that the water level in the boiler chamber 2B (inside the steam generator 2A) is constant.

The control means 5 is a controller having a control circuit electrically connected to the feed pump 2C, the electric heater 2a, the air vent on / off valve 2b, the steam on / off valve 2c, the drain on / off valve 2d, and the like.
The controller serving as the control means 5 is composed of a microcomputer or the like, and starts operation by operating the main power supply 13 and the power switch 11a of the control panel 11, and performs control according to a program written in advance in the control circuit.

Programs such as a preparation process, a standby process, a vacuum process, a sterilization process, and a drying process are preset in the control circuit of the control means 5.
The preparation step refers to a step of supplying a certain amount of water into the steam generator 2A, generating high-temperature steam by the electric heater 2a, and filling the jacket 2F of the boiler chamber 2B with high-temperature steam at a predetermined temperature.
The standby process refers to a process in which the temperature of the electric heater 2a is controlled, the high-temperature steam in the jacket 2F is maintained, an object to be sterilized is stored in the sterilization chamber 1a, and the lid 1b is closed.
The vacuum process refers to a process in which after the start key 11b of the control panel 11 is operated, the air in the sterilization chamber 1a is discharged to remove the residual air in the sterilized object.
The sterilization process refers to a process of supplying high-temperature steam into the sterilization chamber 1a to sterilize an object to be sterilized and exhausting the high-temperature steam in the sterilization chamber 1a after sterilization is completed.
The drying step refers to a step in which evacuation from the sterilization chamber 1a and introduction of outside air are repeated over a set time.

A program written in the control circuit of the control means 5 is shown in a time chart as shown in FIG.
The time chart of FIG. 3 shows a normal operation time.
Here, the operation at the normal operation will be described with reference to FIG.
When the preparatory process program starts when the power is turned on, a certain amount of tap water or the like is supplied into the steam generator 2A by the operation of the water supply pump 2C.
When the operation of the feed water pump 2C is completed, the electric heater 2a is turned on to generate high-temperature steam, which is supplied to the inner space of the jacket 2F serving as the boiler chamber 2B.
At this time, the air vent on / off valve 2b is opened, and the internal air of the jacket 2F begins to be exhausted. The air vent on / off valve 2b is closed after the temperature sensor S2 of the jacket 2F rises to the valve closing temperature, and the exhaust from the jacket 2F is stopped.
Thereafter, when the temperature sensor S2 reaches the set temperature, the preparation process is completed, and the process proceeds to the standby process.

In the standby process, the temperature of the jacket 2F is maintained at a set temperature, and the high temperature steam can be supplied from the jacket 2F into the sterilization chamber 1a.
Thereafter, the object to be sterilized is stored in the sterilization chamber 1a, the lid 1b is closed, and when the start key 11b of the control panel 11 is operated, the vacuum process is started, and thereafter, the vacuum process, the sterilization process, and the drying process proceed sequentially. Is done.

Then, the on-off valve 2d for drainage is automatically opened before the start of the sterilization process such as the preparation process or after the sterilization process after the drying process, and a predetermined amount from the inside of the steam generator 2A. It is controlled to discharge residual hot water.
As an example of the operation by the on-off valve 2d for drainage, the steam generator 2A which is opened for a predetermined time (about 2 to 3 seconds) after the drying process is completed and the lid 1b is opened and becomes the boiler chamber 2B. It is preferable to discharge only a part (about 1/40 to 1/50 of the internal capacity of the steam generator 2A) of the hot water remaining in the interior of the steam generator.

According to such a steam sterilizer A according to the embodiment of the present invention, the control means 5 controls the drain on-off valve 2d at a predetermined timing excluding the sterilization process of the object to be sterilized, so A certain amount of hot water is discharged. Thereby, scale generating substances such as calcium, magnesium and silica contained in the hot water stored in the boiler 2 are reduced. In conjunction with this, since the feed water pump 2C replenishes the boiler 2 by the amount of hot water discharged, the concentration of the scale-generating substance decreases and the amount of scale generated decreases.
Therefore, it is possible to provide a steam sterilizer with a simple structure and a very small amount of scale attached.
As a result, since the heat transfer from the electric heater to the water is not hindered, a decrease in the amount of steam generated and damage due to overheating of the electric heater can be prevented over a long period of time, and safety and economy can be improved.

In particular, when the control means 5 controls the drain on-off valve 2d so that only a part of the hot water remaining in the boiler 2 is discharged, the hot water heated in the previous sterilization process is used. However, when the next high temperature steam is continuously created, the time for creating the high temperature steam is shortened.
Therefore, high temperature steam can be continuously produced in the boiler 2 in a short time and with energy saving while preventing the generation of scale.
As a result, the waiting time is short and economical.

In the previous embodiment, the case where the chamber 1, the boiler 2, the drainage tank 3, the earthquake sensing device 4, and the control means 5 are provided inside the main body cabinet 10 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the earthquake sensing is performed. The apparatus 4 may not be provided, and either one or both of the boiler 2 and the drain tank 3 may be provided outside the main body cabinet 10 and connected to the chamber 1 by piping.
Furthermore, although the chamber 1 and the boiler 2 were provided separately, it is not limited to this, The chamber 1 and the boiler 2 may be integrated and the electric heater 2a of the boiler 2 may be arrange | positioned inside the sterilization room 1a. .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Chamber 2 Boiler 2C Water supply pump 2a Electric heater 2d Drainage on-off valve 5 Control means

Claims (1)

A chamber for sterilizing a stored article to be sterilized under high-temperature steam;
A boiler that generates the high-temperature steam by energization of an electric heater;
A water supply pump for supplying a constant amount of water to the boiler;
An on-off valve for draining the hot water in the boiler to the outside,
Control means for controlling the operation of the electric heater, the water supply pump, and the drainage on / off valve disposed so as to be in contact with water in the boiler;
After the sterilization of the object to be sterilized by the high-temperature steam generated by the electric heater, the control means discharges the drain valve on / off from only a part of the hot water remaining in the boiler. The steam sterilizer is controlled so that a certain amount of water is stored in the boiler.

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