JP6138718B2 - Control unit for mixed faucet and temperature control device for mixed faucet - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for adjusting the temperature of hot water discharged from a mixing faucet.

  Conventionally, a mixing faucet such as a single lever faucet is provided in a kitchen or a washroom. By operating the lever of this mixing faucet, it is possible to easily switch between hot water and water and adjust the hot water temperature. In recent years, in order to further improve the usability of such a mixing faucet, a so-called electronically controlled faucet that electrically controls the water discharge flow rate and water discharge temperature by detecting the operation angle and operation direction of the lever has been proposed ( For example, see Patent Document 1). Even if the lever operation amount is the same, the water discharge temperature varies depending on the water supply temperature, the hot water supply temperature, or the water supply pressure or the hot water supply pressure, so that the water discharge temperature is stabilized by electrical control.

JP-A-5-331888

  By the way, in the market in recent years, the design suitable for the installation space is regarded as important for such a faucet. That is, when a certain function is satisfied as a mixing faucet, a faucet having a design that suits the user's preference is often adopted. For this reason, housing equipment manufacturers line up products of various shapes and sizes as mixed faucets.

  However, as the variation of the shape and size of the mixing faucet increases, the internal structure cannot be changed, and the correspondence between the water discharge temperature and the lever operation amount differs depending on the type of the mixing faucet. If it is going to be constituted as an electronic control faucet mentioned above, control design suitable for those correspondences is needed according to the kind of mixed faucet. This forced the user to select a limited design as an electronically controlled faucet, which was a factor that hindered the spread of electronically controlled faucets.

  This invention is made in view of such a subject, and one of the objectives is providing the apparatus which can adjust water discharge temperature appropriately and easily by electronic control irrespective of the kind of mixing faucet.

  A mixing faucet control unit (hereinafter, also simply referred to as “control unit”) according to an aspect of the present invention includes a hot water introduction path, a water introduction path, and hot water and water introduction introduced into the hot water introduction path. Operated from the outside to operate the hot and cold water mixing mechanism operable to adjust the mixing ratio with the water introduced into the channel, the hot water and water outlet path for deriving the mixed hot and cold water, and the hot and cold water mixing mechanism And an operation unit. This control unit adjusts the temperature of the hot water flowing out from the mixing tap.

  This control unit drives an electric drive mixing valve that mixes and derives hot water supplied through a hot water supply pipe and water supplied through the water supply pipe at a set mixing ratio, and a mixing valve. A controller for controlling, an upstream passage connected to the hot water outlet of the mixing valve, a first downstream passage and a second downstream passage branched from the upstream passage, and the first downstream passage is hot water A branch pipe connected to the water introduction path, the second downstream path being connected to the water introduction path, a first sensor for detecting a flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing through the first downstream path, and a second downstream path The 2nd sensor which detects the flow volume or pressure of the hot water which flows through, and the temperature sensor which detects the temperature of the hot water derived | led-out from the mixing valve are provided.

  The control unit calculates a flow rate ratio between the hot water flowing through the first downstream passage and the hot water flowing through the second downstream passage based on the detection value of the first sensor and the detection value of the second sensor. A target temperature corresponding to the operation amount of the operation unit is set based on the flow rate ratio, and the mixing valve is driven and controlled so that the temperature of the hot water detected by the temperature sensor approaches the target temperature.

  Here, the “hot water introduction channel” and the “water introduction channel” are merely definitions for convenience expressing that the control unit can be applied to an existing mixing faucet. Even in the “introduction path”, hot water adjusted by the control unit is introduced. In other words, the existing mixing faucet mixes hot water and water inside the mixing faucet, so a "hot water introduction path" for introducing hot water and a "water introduction path" for introducing water And are provided separately. This means that the control unit can also be applied to such an existing mixing faucet. Of course, the mixing faucet may be assembled on the premise of the combination with the control unit. In that case, the “hot water introduction path” is replaced with the “first hot water introduction path”, and the “water introduction path” Can be read as “second hot water introduction path”.

  In addition, "hot water" here includes the state of "water" depending on the mixed state of hot water and water. The “first sensor” and the “second sensor” may be a flow sensor that detects the flow rate of hot water or a pressure sensor that detects the pressure of hot water. In the latter case, a constricted portion may be provided at a specific location in the passage to detect the differential pressure across it. If the cross-sectional area of the contracted portion and the front-rear differential pressure are known, the flow rate of hot water flowing through the passage can be calculated. Further, the “pipe” is not limited as long as it allows hot water to pass through, and includes not only a tube-shaped member but also a passage (pipe) formed in a block-shaped member. The “operation unit” may be a lever or a handle. The “operation unit” may be one in which operation directions on the high temperature side and the low temperature side are determined.

  According to this aspect, the operation amount itself of the operation unit of the mixing faucet is not detected and electronic control for temperature adjustment (hereinafter also referred to as “temperature control”) is not performed, but installed outside the mixing faucet. Based on the detected values of the first and second sensors, the flow ratio of the two introduction paths is calculated, and the temperature control based on the flow ratio is performed. That is, hot water that has been temperature-controlled by the mixing valve and has flowed into the upstream passage is led to the hot water introduction passage through the first downstream passage, and is introduced into the water through the second downstream passage on the other hand. Guided to the road. For this reason, the flow rate of the hot water flowing through the hot water introduction passage can be calculated based on the detection value of the first sensor associated with the first downstream side passage. Further, the flow rate of the hot water flowing through the water introduction path can be calculated based on the detection value of the second sensor associated with the second downstream side passage. Therefore, the flow rate ratio between the hot water introduction path and the water introduction path can be calculated based on the output values of the first and second sensors. Since the first downstream passage and the second downstream passage have the same water pressure because the hot water mixed by the mixing valve is branched and introduced, this flow rate ratio is the hot water in the mixing faucet. Corresponds to the mixing ratio by the mixing mechanism. For this reason, the operation amount of the operation unit by the user can be calculated backward (estimated) from this flow rate ratio.

  For this reason, the target temperature set based on the flow rate ratio reflects the user's intention. In this aspect, the mixing valve is driven and controlled so that the actual temperature detected by the temperature sensor (also referred to as “actual temperature”) approaches the target temperature. This temperature control may be feedback control based on the deviation between the target temperature and the actual temperature. According to this aspect, the temperature control is performed in such a way that the operation amount of the operation unit is estimated based on the flow rate ratio of the two passages on the upstream side of the mixing faucet. Unaffected by differences in size and shape. For this reason, according to this aspect, it becomes possible to adjust the water discharge temperature appropriately and easily regardless of the type of the mixing faucet. This means that the control unit does not particularly regulate the design of the mixing faucet, which leads to the spread of electronic control faucets.

  Specifically, the control unit divides the flow ratio into a plurality of flow ratio ranges, maintains a target temperature setting reference in which different target temperatures are associated with each flow ratio range, and corresponds to the calculated flow ratio. The target temperature may be set based on a target temperature setting standard. The “target temperature setting reference” here may be a control map used by the control unit or the control program itself. Since the sensitivity of the user who senses the hot water temperature is not so high, the temperature control is simplified in a stepwise manner. As a result, the processing load can be reduced while satisfying the required temperature control performance, and the control can be stabilized.

  Another aspect of the present invention is a mixed water faucet temperature control device (hereinafter also simply referred to as “temperature control device”). In order to adjust the mixing ratio of the hot water introduced into the first hot water introduction path, the second hot water introduction path, the hot water introduced into the first hot water introduction path, and the hot water introduced into the second hot water introduction path. A hot and cold mixing mechanism that operates, a hot and cold outlet path for deriving hot and cold water after mixing, and an operating unit that is operated from the outside in order to operate the hot and cold mixing mechanism in which operating directions on the high temperature side and the low temperature side are determined. Mixing faucet, hot water supplied through hot water supply pipe, and water supplied through water supply pipe are mixed at a set mixing ratio and derived, and the mixing valve is driven. A control unit for controlling, an upstream passage connected to the hot water outlet of the mixing valve, a first downstream passage and a second downstream passage branched from the upstream passage, and the first downstream passage is the first downstream passage. Connected to the 1 hot water introduction path and the second downstream passage connected to the second hot water introduction path A pipe, a first sensor that detects the flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing through the first downstream passage, a second sensor that detects the flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing through the second downstream passage, and hot water derived from the mixing valve A temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of

  The control unit calculates a flow rate ratio between the hot water flowing through the first downstream passage and the hot water flowing through the second downstream passage based on the detection value of the first sensor and the detection value of the second sensor. A target temperature corresponding to the operation amount of the operation unit is set based on the flow rate ratio, and the mixing valve is driven and controlled so that the temperature of the hot water detected by the temperature sensor approaches the target temperature.

  The “hot water”, “piping”, “operation unit”, “first sensor”, and “second sensor” here are as described above. The temperature control may be feedback control based on a deviation between the target temperature and the actual temperature. According to this aspect, the temperature control is not performed by detecting the operation amount itself of the operation unit of the mixing faucet, but based on the detection values of the first and second sensors installed outside the mixing faucet. The flow rate ratio of the two hot water and water introduction paths is calculated, and temperature control is performed based on the flow rate ratio. That is, the flow rate ratio between the first hot water introduction path and the second hot water introduction path can be calculated based on the output values of the first and second sensors. Since this flow rate ratio corresponds to the mixing ratio of the hot and cold water mixing mechanism in the mixing tap, the operation amount of the operation unit by the user can be calculated backward (estimated) from this flow rate ratio.

  According to this aspect, the temperature control is performed in such a way that the operation amount of the operation unit is estimated based on the flow rate ratio of the two passages on the upstream side of the mixing faucet. Unaffected by differences in size and shape. For this reason, it becomes possible to adjust discharge water temperature appropriately and easily irrespective of the kind of mixing faucet. This means that mixed taps of various designs can be applied to the temperature control device, leading to the popularization of electronically controlled taps.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the apparatus which can adjust water discharge temperature appropriately and easily by electronic control irrespective of the kind of mixing faucet can be provided.

It is a figure which shows typically the temperature control apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows typically the structure of the principal part of a mixing faucet. It is a fragmentary sectional view showing typically the concrete structure of a mixing valve. It is a figure which shows the relationship between operation of an operation lever, and temperature setting. It is a flowchart which shows the basic process in temperature control. It is a flowchart which shows the temperature control process in S110 of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the temperature control apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, for the sake of convenience, the positional relationship between the structures may be expressed based on the illustrated state.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating the temperature control device according to the first embodiment.
The temperature adjusting device 1 includes a mixing faucet 10 and a control unit 12 for adjusting the water discharge temperature of the mixing faucet 10. The control unit 12 mixes hot water supplied from the water heater 14 and water supplied from the water supply to obtain hot water having an appropriate temperature, and supplies it to the mixing tap 10. The control unit 12 is also configured to be able to wirelessly communicate with the external terminal 16. The external terminal 16 may be various terminals such as a tablet terminal.

  The mixing faucet 10 is a single lever faucet in this embodiment, and has a faucet body 20 and an operation lever 22. The mixing faucet 10 can also be used as a general faucet to which this embodiment is not applied. In preparation for this, the faucet body 20 is provided with a hot water introduction path 24 for introducing hot water and a water introduction path 26 for introducing water. Such a general usage form is also assumed, and hereinafter, it will be expressed as a “hot water introduction path” and a “water introduction path” for convenience. In this embodiment, any one of the hot water introduction path 24 and the water introduction path 26 is used. The same hot water is also introduced. Therefore, the hot water introduction path 24 functions as a “first hot water introduction path” and the water introduction path 26 functions as a “second hot water introduction path”. By operating the operation lever 22 in the vertical direction, the flow rate of water discharged from the mixing tap 10 can be adjusted. Moreover, the water discharge temperature from the mixing tap 10 can be adjusted by operating the operation lever 22 in the left-right direction as viewed from the user. Details of the configuration and operation of the mixing tap 10 will be described later.

  Hot water is introduced from the water heater 14 through the hot water supply pipe 30 to the control unit 12, and water is introduced from the water supply through the water supply pipe 32. The hot water supply pipe 30 is provided with a water stop cock 34 for allowing or blocking hot water supply to the control unit 12. The water supply pipe 32 is provided with a water stop cock 36 for allowing or blocking water supply to the control unit 12. These stopcocks 34 and 36 are normally in an opened state. The hot water heater 14 may adopt any method such as an immediate hot water supply method or a hot water storage type hot water supply method, but since the hot water supply method itself is known, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  The control unit 12 mixes hot water supplied through the hot water supply pipe 30 and water supplied through the water supply pipe 32 to obtain hot water having an appropriate temperature, and drives and controls the mixing valve 40. A control unit 42 is provided. The mixing valve 40 includes a body 44 in which an internal passage is formed, a valve body 46 accommodated in the body 44, and a motor 48 that drives the valve body 46. The body 44 is provided with a hot water introduction port 45 communicating with the hot water supply pipe 30, a water introduction port 47 communicating with the water supply pipe 32, and a hot water discharge port 50 through which hot water is led out. The control unit 42 controls driving of the motor 48. By operating the valve body 46 by driving the motor 48, the opening ratio between the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet 47 is changed, thereby adjusting the mixing ratio of hot water and water. The mixed hot water is led out from the hot water outlet 50. Details of the configuration and operation of the mixing valve 40 will be described later.

  A branch pipe 52 is connected to the downstream side of the mixing valve 40. The branch pipe 52 has an upstream passage 54 connected to the hot water outlet 50 and downstream passages 56 and 58 branched on the downstream side of the upstream passage 54. The downstream passage 56 functions as a “first downstream passage” and is connected to the hot water introduction passage 24. On the other hand, the downstream side passage 58 functions as a “second downstream side passage” and is connected to the water introduction passage 26. A flow rate sensor 60 is provided in the downstream side passage 56, and a flow rate sensor 62 is provided in the downstream side passage 58. The flow rate sensor 60 functions as a “first sensor” and detects the flow rate Q 1 of hot water flowing through the downstream side passage 56. On the other hand, the flow rate sensor 62 functions as a “second sensor” and detects the flow rate Q2 of the hot water flowing through the downstream side passage 58.

  A temperature sensor 64 is provided in the upstream passage 54. The temperature sensor 64 functions as a “first temperature sensor” and detects the temperature T 1 of hot water flowing through the upstream side passage 54. On the other hand, a temperature sensor 66 is provided between the mixing valve 40 and the stop cock 34 in the hot water supply pipe 30. The temperature sensor 66 functions as a “second temperature sensor” and detects the temperature T2 of hot water supplied via the hot water supply pipe 30. A temperature sensor 68 is provided between the mixing valve 40 and the stop cock 36 in the water supply pipe 32. The temperature sensor 68 functions as a “third temperature sensor”, and detects the temperature T3 of the water supplied via the water supply pipe 32.

  The control unit 42 includes a CPU that executes various arithmetic processes, a ROM that stores various control programs, a RAM that is used as a work area for data storage and program execution, an input / output interface, and the like. The control unit 42 sets a target temperature of hot water to flow out of the mixing valve 40 based on information detected by various sensors, and performs feedback control based on a deviation between the actual temperature detected by the temperature sensor 64 and the target temperature. Execute. Thereby, the water discharge temperature according to the operation amount of the operation lever 22 is obtained in the mixing tap 10. Details of this specific control will be described later.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the main part of the mixing tap 10. FIG. 2A is an overall view of the mixing faucet 10, and FIG. 2B is an exploded view showing the configuration of the hot water mixing mechanism. FIGS. 2C and 2D are explanatory views showing the operation of the hot and cold mixing mechanism.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the faucet body 20 includes a body 70 erected with respect to a mounting surface such as a kitchen or a washroom, and a discharge pipe 72 extending in one direction from the body 70. In the body 70, in addition to the hot water introduction path 24 and the water introduction path 26 described above, a hot water outlet path 27 extends vertically and is provided in parallel with each other. A hot water discharge path 29 is formed inside the discharge pipe 72. The hot water discharge path 29 communicates with the hot water outlet path 27 in the body 70. A fixed disk 74 and a movable disk 76 are disposed on the upper portion of the body 70. These discs and the operating lever 22 constitute a “hot water mixing mechanism”.

  As shown in FIG. 2 (b), a hot water inlet hole 80, a water inlet hole 82 and a hot water outlet hole 84 are formed through the fixed disk 74 in the axial direction. The hot water inflow hole 80 communicates with the hot water introduction path 24, the water inflow hole 82 communicates with the water introduction path 26, and the hot water outflow hole 84 communicates with the hot water discharge path 27. A seal member (not shown) is interposed between the body 70 and the fixed disk 74, and a seal between the holes below the fixed disk 74 is ensured.

  A noncircular hot water outlet hole 86 is formed in the movable disk 76 so as to penetrate the center in the axial direction. The movable disk 76 is assembled to the fixed disk 74 from above. The movable disk 76 is slidable in the radial direction of the fixed disk 74 and is supported so as to be rotatable about its own axis. That is, the movable disk 76 is displaced in the radial direction of the fixed disk 74 (A direction in the figure), thereby realizing a communication state or a non-communication state between the hot water inlet hole 80 and the water inlet hole 82 and the hot water outlet hole 86. And the opening area of the communication portion can be changed. A mixing space 88 for mixing hot water is formed inside the hot water outlet hole 86 in the movable disk 76.

  Further, by rotating the movable disk 76 around the axis line (B direction in the figure) in a state where the hot water inlet hole 80 and the water inlet hole 82 and the hot water outlet hole 86 are in communication with each other, the hot water inlet hole 80 and water The ratio of the opening area to the inflow hole 82 (also referred to as “opening ratio”) can be changed. That is, the ratio of the area where the hot water inlet hole 80 and the hot water outlet hole 86 overlap with the area where the water inlet hole 82 and the hot water outlet hole 86 overlap changes depending on the rotation angle of the movable disk 76. Thereby, the mixing ratio of hot water flowing into the mixing space 88 from each of the hot water inflow hole 80 and the water inflow hole 82 can be changed. Note that a partition wall is provided above the movable disk 76 via a seal member (not shown) to prevent external leakage of hot water.

  Movement of the movable disk 76 in the radial direction (A direction) is realized by a link mechanism provided between the movable disk 76 and the operation lever 22. That is, by operating the operation lever 22 up and down, the movable disk 76 can be displaced in the radial direction and the amount of hot water discharged can be adjusted. On the other hand, the rotation of the movable disk 76 is realized by a rotation mechanism provided between the operation lever 22 and the movable disk 76. That is, by operating the operation lever 22 in the left-right direction as seen in a plan view, the movable disk 76 can be rotated around the axis, and the mixing ratio of hot and cold water can be adjusted. Since these mechanisms and operations are known as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-1762, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  When the operation lever 22 is fully lowered, hot water is not introduced through the hot water introduction passage 24 and the water introduction passage 26, and the water is stopped. When the operation lever 22 is lifted from this state, the movable disk 76 is displaced, and the hot water inlet hole 80 and the water inlet hole 82 communicate with the hot water outlet hole 86, respectively. As shown in FIG. Hot water is introduced into 88. That is, the hot water introduced into the hot water introduction path 24 is guided to the mixing space 88 through the hot water inflow hole 80 (see the dashed line arrow). The hot water introduced into the water introduction passage 26 is guided to the mixing space 88 through the water inflow hole 82 (see solid arrow). These hot water and water are mixed in the mixing space 88 and led out from the hot water outlet hole 86. The hot water is guided to the hot water outlet passage 27 through the hot water outlet hole 84 and discharged through the hot water discharge passage 29.

  The mixing ratio of hot water and water in the mixing space 88 is adjusted by the rotation angle of the movable disk 76. FIG. 2C shows a state in which the movable disk 76 is in the neutral position. In this state, the mixing ratio of the hot water introduced through the hot water introduction passage 24 and the hot water introduced through the water introduction passage 26 is 1, and both are mixed evenly. On the other hand, FIG. 2D shows a state in which the movable disk 76 is rotated in one direction from the neutral position. In this state, the ratio of hot water introduced through the water introduction path 26 is increased. In this way, the mixing ratio of hot and cold water can be changed.

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view schematically showing a specific structure of the mixing valve 40.
The mixing valve 40 is provided with a hot water outlet 50 at one end of a stepped cylindrical body 44 and a motor 48 at the other end. A hot water inlet 45 and a water inlet 47 are provided on the side of the body 44 with a gap therebetween. A hot and cold mixing chamber 90 is formed in the body 44. A guide portion 92 is formed so as to penetrate the partition wall between the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet 47 in the body 44 in the axial direction. A valve body 46 is disposed so as to penetrate the guide portion 92. The valve body 46 has a cylindrical shape and is supported so as to be slidable in the axial direction along the guide portion 92.

  A load adjusting member 94 is disposed so as to close the other end opening of the body 44. A male screw portion 96 is provided around the outer periphery of the load adjusting member 94. On the other hand, a female screw portion 98 is formed in the other end opening of the body 44. The load adjusting member 94 is attached to the body 44 so that the male screw portion 96 is screwed into the female screw portion 98. The load adjusting member 94 is connected to the rotating shaft of the motor 48 through an operation conversion mechanism (not shown). This operation conversion mechanism converts the rotational motion of the motor 48 into the rotational and translational motion of the load adjusting member 94. The load adjusting member 94 can be displaced in the axial direction by driving the motor 48.

  A temperature-sensitive coil spring 100 is interposed between the bottom of the body 44 and the valve body 46. On the other hand, a bias spring 102 is provided between the valve body 46 and the load adjusting member 94. The temperature-sensitive coil spring 100 is formed of a shape memory alloy spring, and has a characteristic that its spring constant changes linearly according to the temperature of hot water in the hot water / mixing chamber 90. That is, the valve body 46 is driven to a position where the urging force of the temperature sensitive coil spring 100 corresponding to the temperature of the hot and cold water mixed in the hot and cold mixing chamber 90 and the urging force of the bias spring 102 are balanced. The mixing ratio of hot water and water is adjusted so that the set temperature is reached.

  FIG. 3 shows a state in which the valve body 46 is in the neutral position. In this state, the ratio of the opening areas of the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet 47 is equal. When the valve body 46 moves from the neutral position to one side, the opening area of one of the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet 47 becomes larger, and when the valve body 46 moves from the neutral position to the other side, the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet The other opening area of the mouth 47 is larger. That is, the mixing valve 40 is configured such that the hot water inlet 45 and the water inlet 47 are not closed at the same time.

  In the present embodiment, taking into consideration the hot water temperature supplied from the hot water heater 14, each of the temperature sensing coil spring 100 and the bias spring 102 is set so that the temperature of the hot water in the hot water mixing chamber 90 at this neutral position is about 40 ° C. Load is set. Then, the position of the load adjusting member 94 is adjusted according to the temperature requested by the user by operating the operation lever 22. As a result, the valve body 46 is displaced to change the mixing ratio of hot water and water so as to be close to the temperature required by the user.

  That is, when the actual temperature of the hot water is lower than the biasing force of the bias spring 102 corresponding to the temperature set by the load adjusting member 94, the biasing force of the temperature-sensitive coil spring 100 becomes smaller. As a result, the valve body 46 moves from the neutral position to the right in the figure, increasing the opening area of the hot water inlet 45 and decreasing the opening area of the water inlet 47. Thereby, the temperature of the hot water in the hot water mixing chamber 90 can be raised. On the other hand, when the actual temperature of the hot water is high, the urging force of the temperature-sensitive coil spring 100 becomes larger. As a result, the valve body 46 moves from the neutral position to the left in the figure, reducing the opening area of the hot water inlet 45 and increasing the opening area of the water inlet 47. Thereby, the temperature of the hot water in the hot water mixing chamber 90 can be lowered. In this way, the temperature of the hot and cold water after mixing can be maintained at the set temperature. This set temperature can be changed afterwards by driving the load adjusting member 94.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between operation of the operation lever 22 and temperature setting. Fig.4 (a) shows the relationship between the operation angle of the left-right direction of the operation lever 22 at the time of seeing the mixing tap 10 in planar view, and the temperature range of hot water. FIG. 4B shows the relationship between the hot / cold water mixing ratio and the operating angle of the operating lever 22. FIG. 4C shows the relationship between the hot / cold water mixing ratio and the set temperature. The “operation angle” here is assumed to be a state in which the user operates the operation lever 22 in front of the mixing tap 10, and the front-rear direction passing through the rotation fulcrum O of the operation lever 22 is the reference angle of the operation angle. Assume (0 degrees). It is assumed that when the operation lever 22 is operated to the right in the horizontal direction from this reference angle, the operation angle becomes positive, and conversely, when the operation lever 22 is operated to the left in the horizontal direction, the operation angle becomes negative. In this case, the operation lever 22 can be operated within a range of ± 45 degrees.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, in this embodiment, the operation range of the operation angle is +15 degrees to +45 degrees is water, the operation range of −15 degrees to +15 degrees is 30 ° C. hot water, −30 degrees to − An operation range of 15 degrees is set as 35 ° C. hot water, and an operation range of −45 degrees to −30 degrees is set as 40 ° C. hot water. That is, when the operation range of the operation lever 22 is specified by the arithmetic processing described later, the temperature control is executed using the temperature corresponding to the specified operation range as the target temperature.

  As shown in FIG. 4 (b), the flow rate of hot water flowing through the hot water introduction passage 24 (referred to as “hot water side flow rate” for convenience) and the hot water flowing through the water introduction passage 26 according to the operating angle of the operation lever 22 ( The flow rate ratio (hot water side flow rate / water side flow rate) with respect to “water side flow rate” for convenience changes. For this reason, the operation angle of the operation lever 22 can be calculated backward (estimated) from the flow rate ratio. This means that the temperature of hot water requested by the user can be estimated from the flow rate ratio.

  Then, as shown in FIG.4 (c), the preset temperature which a user requests | requires is specified from the flow rate ratio of hot water. In the example shown in the figure, the range of the flow rate ratio of 0 to 0.5 is the water temperature, the range of the flow rate ratio of 0.5 to 2 is 30 ° C., the range of the flow rate ratio of 2 to 5 is 35 ° C., and the flow rate ratio is The range of 5 or more is 40 ° C. The relationship shown in FIG. 4C is used as a control map in the temperature control.

  The control unit 42 can sequentially store and update the water discharge flow rate by the mixing tap 10 in parallel with the temperature control, and can output information such as the daily integrated flow rate and instantaneous flow rate to the external terminal 16. Yes. In addition, information such as the target temperature and actual temperature by temperature control can be output to the external terminal 16. Conversely, a request for changing the set temperature can be transmitted from the external terminal 16 to the control unit 42, and the control unit 42 can also execute temperature control based on the request. That is, the control unit 12 can be remotely controlled by the external terminal 16. For example, while the upper limit temperature of hot water that can be set by the operation lever 22 is about 40 ° C., the upper limit temperature may be set to 50 ° C. or 60 ° C. only when instructed by the external terminal 16. Thereby, when using a mixing faucet normally, it can control so that hot hot water may not be made.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a basic process in temperature control.
The control unit 42 repeatedly executes the process of this figure at a predetermined control cycle. That is, if the temperature control is not yet started (N in S100), whether or not the user has operated the operation lever 22 is determined based on whether or not the flow rate of hot water has been detected. That is, the determination is made based on whether or not the detection is performed by the flow sensors 60 and 62. At this time, if there is flow rate detection (Y in S102), the hot water temperature T2 detected by the temperature sensor 66 and the water temperature T3 detected by the temperature sensor 68 are acquired (S104), and whether or not the temperature can be adjusted. Determine (S106). For example, when the hot water temperature T2 is lower than a predetermined reference value, such as when hot water is not sufficiently supplied due to circumstances on the side of the water heater 14, it is determined that the temperature control cannot be performed. In addition, when the water temperature T3 is higher than a predetermined reference value, such as when the water temperature is higher than expected due to circumstances such as the external environment, it is determined that the temperature control is virtually impossible.

  If it is determined that the temperature can be adjusted (Y in S108), the temperature control process is executed (S110). If it is determined that the temperature cannot be controlled (N in S108), the process of S110 is skipped. If the temperature control is already being performed (Y in S100), the temperature control process is continued (S110).

  On the other hand, when there is no flow rate detection (N in S102), communication information processing is executed. That is, if there is a request from the external terminal 16, various information is transmitted to the external terminal 16 according to the request. Further, when there is a control request such as changing the set temperature from the external terminal 16, the drive control of the mixing valve 40 is executed in accordance therewith.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the temperature control process in S110 of FIG.
First, the control unit 42 acquires the flow rate Q1 detected by the flow rate sensor 60 and the flow rate Q2 detected by the flow rate sensor 62 (S120), and calculates the flow rate ratio Qr (= Q1 / Q2) (S122). Then, referring to the control map shown in FIG. 4C based on the calculated flow rate ratio Qr, the set temperature is set as the target temperature Tset (S124). On the other hand, the actual temperature T1 of the hot water detected by the temperature sensor 64 is acquired (S126). Then, a deviation ΔT (= Tset−T1) between the target temperature Tset and the actual temperature T1 is calculated (S128), and feedback control based on the deviation ΔT is executed. That is, a control output value is calculated based on the deviation ΔT (S130), and a control command is output to the drive circuit of the mixing valve 40 (S132).

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the temperature control is performed in such a manner that the operation amount of the operation lever 22 is estimated based on the flow rate ratio of the downstream passages 56 and 58 on the upstream side of the mixing tap 10. Therefore, the temperature control is not affected by the difference in the size and shape of the mixing tap 10. For this reason, it becomes possible to adjust the water discharge temperature appropriately and easily regardless of the type of the mixing faucet. This means that mixed taps of various designs can be applied to the temperature control device 1, leading to the popularization of electronically controlled taps.

  Further, since the control unit 12 can be applied regardless of the type of the mixing faucet, for example, the control unit 12 can be assembled to the mixing faucet already installed in a kitchen or a washroom. For this reason, when the existing mixing faucet is not an electronic control faucet, it can be reformed into an electronic control faucet.

[Second Embodiment]
The present embodiment has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment except that the flow rate can be adjusted by a foot pedal. For this reason, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating a temperature control device according to the second embodiment.

  In the temperature adjustment device 201 of this embodiment, an electromagnetic valve 240 is provided between the mixing valve 40 and the temperature sensor 64 in the control unit 212. The electromagnetic valve 240 is a proportional valve whose opening is adjusted according to the supply current value, and the opening can be adjusted by operating the foot pedal 250. The foot pedal 250 and the electromagnetic valve 240 are capable of wireless communication. When the solenoid valve 240 is fully opened, the configuration is almost the same as that of the first embodiment.

  According to this embodiment, the user can change the amount of water discharged by the mixing faucet 10 without using a hand. Even in such a configuration, the temperature control is performed in such a manner that the operation amount of the operation lever 22 is estimated based on the flow rate ratio of the downstream passages 56 and 58 on the upstream side of the mixing tap 10. For this reason, the control method is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the same effect can be obtained.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. Nor.

  In the said embodiment, the example which comprises the mixing faucet 10 as a single lever faucet was shown. In a modified example, the mixing faucet may be configured as a two-handle faucet. The hot water introduction path 24 (first hot water introduction path) may be provided on the hot water handle side, and the water introduction path 26 (second hot water introduction path) may be provided on the water handle side. Even if the configuration of the mixing faucet itself is changed in this way, in the above embodiment, hot water is mixed on the upstream side of the mixing faucet, and temperature control is performed based on the upstream flow rate ratio. There is no effect.

  In the above embodiment, the flow rate sensor 60 is provided in the downstream side passage 56, while the flow rate sensor 62 is provided in the downstream side passage 58, and the flow rate ratio between the hot water flowing through the downstream side passage 56 and the hot water flowing through the downstream side passage 58 is calculated. The configuration was shown. In the modification, pressure sensors may be provided in place of the flow sensors 60 and 62, respectively. And you may make it provide a constriction part in each specific location of the downstream channel | paths 56 and 58, and may detect the pressure difference before and behind. If the cross-sectional area of the contracted portion and the front-rear differential pressure are known, the flow rate of hot water flowing through the passage can be calculated.

  Although not described in the above embodiment, an electromagnetic valve that can switch between discharging or stopping hot water from the mixing tap 10 may be provided separately. In that case, the solenoid valve may be controlled by a foot pedal or the like.

  Although not described in the above embodiment, the control unit may change the hot water supply temperature for the water heater. In the flowchart of FIG. 5, in the process of determining whether or not the temperature can be adjusted (S106), the hot water temperature T2 is lower than a predetermined reference value such that sufficient hot water is not supplied due to circumstances on the water heater 14 side. In this case, it is determined that the temperature control cannot be performed, but it is possible to make the temperature control possible by performing control to communicate with the water heater 14 so as to raise the hot water temperature.

  In the above embodiment, the control map in the temperature control is changed stepwise, but the control map may be changed continuously.

  Although not described in the above embodiment, the control unit may be applied not only to a kitchen or a washroom, but also to a mixing faucet in a bathtub.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment and modification, A component can be deform | transformed and embodied in the range which does not deviate from a summary. Various inventions may be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments and modifications. Moreover, you may delete some components from all the components shown by the said embodiment and modification.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Temperature control device, 10 Mixing faucet, 12 Control unit, 16 External terminal, 20 Water faucet body, 22 Operation lever, 24 Hot water introduction path, 26 Water introduction path, 27 Hot water discharge path, 29 Hot water discharge path, 30 Hot water supply pipe, 32 Water supply pipe, 40 Mixing valve, 42 Control unit, 44 Body, 45 Hot water inlet, 46 Valve body, 47 Water inlet, 48 Motor, 50 Hot water outlet, 52 Branch pipe, 54 Upstream passage, 56 , 58 downstream passage, 60, 62 flow sensor, 64, 66, 68 temperature sensor, 70 body, 72 discharge pipe, 74 fixed disk, 76 movable disk, 80 hot water inlet hole, 82 water inlet hole, 84 hot water outlet hole, 86 Hot water outlet hole, 88 Mixing space, 90 Hot water mixing chamber, 94 Load adjusting member, 201 Temperature adjusting device , 212 control unit, 240 an electromagnetic valve, 250 foot pedal.

Claims (3)

A hot water introduction path, a water introduction path, a hot water mixing mechanism operable to adjust a mixing ratio of hot water introduced into the hot water introduction path and water introduced into the water introduction path; Hot and cold water flowing out from the mixing faucet, connected to a mixing faucet comprising a hot water outlet path for deriving the hot and cold water after mixing, and an operation unit operated from the outside to operate the hot water mixing mechanism A mixing faucet control unit for adjusting temperature,
An electrically driven mixing valve that mixes and derives hot water supplied through the hot water supply pipe and water supplied through the water supply pipe at a set mixing ratio;
A control unit for driving and controlling the mixing valve;
An upstream passage connected to the hot water outlet of the mixing valve; a first downstream passage and a second downstream passage branched from the upstream passage; wherein the first downstream passage is the hot water introduction passage. A branch pipe in which the second downstream passage is connected to the water introduction path;
A first sensor for detecting a flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing in the first downstream passage;
A second sensor for detecting a flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing through the second downstream passage;
A temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water derived from the mixing valve;
With
The controller is
Based on the detection value of the first sensor and the detection value of the second sensor, the flow rate ratio of the hot water flowing through the first downstream passage and the hot water flowing through the second downstream passage is calculated,
Based on the calculated flow rate ratio, set a target temperature corresponding to the operation amount of the operation unit,
A mixing faucet control unit, wherein the mixing valve is driven and controlled so that the temperature of hot water detected by the temperature sensor approaches the target temperature. The controller is
The flow rate ratio is divided into a plurality of flow rate ratio ranges, and a target temperature setting reference in which a different target temperature is associated with each flow rate ratio range is maintained.
The mixed water faucet control unit according to claim 1, wherein a target temperature corresponding to the calculated flow rate ratio is set based on the target temperature setting reference. Hot water mixing that operates to adjust the mixing ratio of hot water introduced into the first hot water introduction path, hot water introduced into the first hot water introduction path, and hot water introduced into the second hot water introduction path. A mixing faucet having a mechanism, a hot water outlet channel for leading hot and cold water after mixing, and an operation unit operated from the outside to operate the hot water mixing mechanism,
An electrically driven mixing valve that mixes and derives hot water supplied through the hot water supply pipe and water supplied through the water supply pipe at a set mixing ratio;
A control unit for driving and controlling the mixing valve;
An upstream passage connected to the hot water outlet of the mixing valve; a first downstream passage and a second downstream passage branched from the upstream passage; wherein the first downstream passage introduces the first hot water introduction A branch pipe that is connected to a road and the second downstream passage is connected to the second hot water introduction path;
A first sensor for detecting a flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing in the first downstream passage;
A second sensor for detecting a flow rate or pressure of hot water flowing through the second downstream passage;
A temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water derived from the mixing valve;
With
The controller is
Based on the detection value of the first sensor and the detection value of the second sensor, the flow rate ratio of the hot water flowing through the first downstream passage and the hot water flowing through the second downstream passage is calculated,
Based on the calculated flow rate ratio, set a target temperature corresponding to the operation amount of the operation unit,
The mixing valve faucet temperature control device, wherein the mixing valve is driven and controlled so that the temperature of the hot water detected by the temperature sensor approaches the target temperature.

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