JP6986717B2 - hair dryer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a hair dryer that dries hair.

Conventionally, as this kind of hair dryer, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 is known. Patent Document 1 describes a hair dryer configured to detect the temperature of hair by detecting infrared rays emitted from the hair and to turn on an LED when the detected temperature of the hair reaches a predetermined temperature. Has been done.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-95813

However, the hair dryer of Patent Document 1 still has room for improvement in terms of making the entire hair into a more appropriate dry state.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a hair dryer capable of making the entire hair into a more appropriate dry state in order to solve the above-mentioned problems.

In order to achieve the above object, the hair dryer according to the present invention has a blower unit for blowing wind and a blower unit.
A hair detection unit that detects whether or not the wind blown from the blower unit hits the hair, and a hair detection unit.
A time measuring unit that measures the time when the hair detecting unit detects that the wind hits the hair, and a time measuring unit.
A determination unit that determines the dry state of hair based on the time measured by the time measurement unit, and a determination unit.
A transmission unit that transmits information on the dry state of the hair to the user based on the result determined by the determination unit.
To prepare for.

According to the hair dryer according to the present invention, the entire hair can be brought into a more suitable dry state.

It is a perspective view of the hair dryer which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a vertical sectional view which shows the internal structure of the hair dryer of FIG. It is a block diagram about the control part of the hair dryer of FIG. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the drying time and the temperature of a hair. It is a graph showing the relationship between the drying time and the time measured by the time measuring unit. It is a figure which shows the example which is displayed on the display part. It is a figure which shows the modification which is displayed on the display part. It is a figure which shows the modification which is displayed on the display part. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the water content of a hair, and the temperature of a hair. It is a graph showing the relationship between the weight of the hair and the time when the wind hits the hair when the wind is applied to each of the root and the tip of the hair.

(Findings underlying this disclosure)
The present inventors have obtained the following novel findings as a result of diligent studies in order to make the entire hair in a more appropriate dry state.

In order to make the whole hair more suitable for drying, it is desirable to heat the whole hair without excess or deficiency until the whole hair has an optimum amount of water. Conventionally, the temperature of hair has been used as a guideline for determining the dry state of hair. However, the amount of water contained in the hair is not proportional to the temperature of the hair.

For example, in hair to which warm air is applied, it is assumed that the amount of water (moisture content) contained in the hair is 35% and the temperature of the hair is 30 degrees at the start of heating. Further, it is assumed that the optimum amount of water contained in the hair at the end of heating is 10%, and the temperature of the hair required to obtain the optimum amount of water is 60 degrees. In this case, as shown in FIG. 8, when the hair is started to be heated by the hair dryer, the temperature of the hair rises rapidly, and when the temperature reaches about 50 degrees or more, the temperature change of the hair becomes small. When the temperature of the hair reaches about 60 degrees, the amount of water continues to decrease while keeping the temperature almost constant. More specifically, when the amount of water contained in the hair is 10% to 20%, the temperature of the hair is maintained at about 60 degrees.

Therefore, in the conventional configuration in which the LED is turned on when the temperature of the hair reaches a predetermined temperature (for example, 60 degrees) to display the dry state to the user, the amount of water contained in the hair is the optimum amount of water. The LED lights up before it reaches 10%. Therefore, the user erroneously recognizes that the portion of the hair to which the warm air is applied has finished drying, and either changes the portion to which the warm air is applied to another portion of the hair, or stops the operation of the hair dryer. In this case, the overall dry state of the hair becomes insufficient.

Also, the user usually changes the portion of the hair to which warm air is applied in order to dry the entire hair more evenly. At this time, the temperature of the portion of the hair that has been heated by the warm air and has reached the optimum amount of water decreases while the warm air is not applied. In this state, when warm air is blown to the hair portion again, the LED does not light until the temperature of the hair portion reaches 60 degrees. Therefore, the user may mistakenly recognize that the hair portion is not sufficiently dried, and may continue to apply warm air to the hair portion. In this case, the entire hair will be overheated.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9, the present inventors have a correlation between the dry state of the hair and the time when the wind hits the hair, and further, the correlation is in the place where the wind is applied to the hair. I got a new finding that it does not depend. FIG. 9 is a graph showing the relationship between the weight of the hair and the time when the wind hits the hair when the wind is applied to each of the root and the tip of the hair. The change in the weight of the hair indicates the change in the amount of water contained in the hair. In FIG. 9, the solid line shows the result when the wind is applied to the root of the hair, and the dotted line shows the result when the wind is applied to the tip of the hair. From FIG. 9, it can be confirmed that there is a similar correlation between the time when the wind hits the root of the hair and the weight of the hair, and the time when the wind hits the tip of the hair and the weight of the hair. The following can be considered as the reason for this. When the root of the hair is exposed to the wind, the hair is pressed against the scalp by the wind and dried in a fixed state. On the other hand, when the wind is applied to the tips of the hair, the hair is not fixed and flutters in the wind, but the fluttering of the hair causes the hair bundles to loosen, and the contact area between the wind and the hair increases and the hair dries. Will be done. As a result, a similar correlation can be obtained between the time the wind hits the hair and the weight of the hair, regardless of where the wind hits the hair. Therefore, the hair can be dried without being particularly conscious of the place where the wind is applied to the hair.

Based on this novel finding, the present inventors determine the dry state of the hair based on the time when the wind hits the hair, and convey the information about the dry state of the hair to the user to further improve the whole hair. We found that it was possible to make it in an appropriate dry state, and came up with the following invention.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a blower portion for blowing wind and a blower portion.
A hair detection unit that detects whether or not the wind blown from the blower unit hits the hair, and a hair detection unit.
A time measuring unit that measures the time when the hair detecting unit detects that the wind hits the hair, and a time measuring unit.
A determination unit that determines the dry state of hair based on the time measured by the time measurement unit, and a determination unit.
A transmission unit that transmits information on the dry state of the hair to the user based on the result determined by the determination unit.
To provide a hair dryer.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the hair detection unit has a non-contact temperature sensor, and the temperature of the hair is set in advance of the ambient temperature of the hair based on the detection temperature of the non-contact temperature sensor. The hair dryer according to the first aspect is provided, which determines that the wind hits the hair when it detects that the temperature is higher than the specified temperature.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the hair detecting unit has a distance sensor, and when the detection distance of the distance sensor is shorter than a preset distance, it is determined that the wind hits the hair. The hair dryer according to the embodiment is provided.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the determination unit determines the dry state of the hair based on whether or not the time measured by the time measurement unit reaches at least one preset reference value. The hair dryer according to any one of the first to third aspects is provided.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, a length input unit for inputting the length of the hair is further provided.
The determination unit provides the hair dryer according to the fourth aspect, which changes the reference value according to the length of the hair input by the length input unit.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, a hair amount input unit for inputting the amount of hair is further provided.
The determination unit provides the hair dryer according to the fourth or fifth aspect, which changes the reference value according to the hair amount input by the hair amount input unit.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, an environmental temperature detecting unit for detecting the environmental temperature around the hair is further provided.
The determination unit provides the hair dryer according to any one of the fourth to sixth aspects, which changes the reference value according to the environmental temperature detected by the environmental temperature detection unit.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, an environmental humidity detecting unit for detecting the environmental humidity around the hair is further provided.
The determination unit provides the hair dryer according to any one of the fourth to seventh aspects, which changes the reference value according to the environmental humidity detected by the environmental humidity detection unit.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the transmission unit has a plurality of light emitting bodies, and the light emitting body to be emitted is changed based on the result determined by the determination unit, whichever of the first to eighth aspects. The hair dryer described in one of the above is provided.

According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, the transmission unit has at least one light emitting body, and the light amount or color of the light emitting body is changed based on the result determined by the determination unit. The hair dryer according to any one of the embodiments is provided.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to this embodiment.

Further, in the following, for convenience of explanation, terms indicating directions such as "upper", "lower", "front", and "rear" are used assuming a state during normal use, but the hair dryer of the present invention is used. It does not mean to limit the state or the like.

<< Embodiment >>
The overall structure of the hair dryer 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hair dryer 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the hair dryer 1 of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, the hair dryer 1 according to the present embodiment includes a main body portion 10 and a handle portion 20.

As shown in FIG. 2, a blower portion 11 for blowing wind is provided inside the main body portion 10. The blower unit 11 includes a fan 12, a motor 13 which is an example of a drive source, and a heater 14 which is an example of a heating unit. The fan 12 is rotationally driven by the motor 13 to take in external air into the main body 10 through a suction port 10a provided at the rear end of the main body 10, and is provided at the front of the main body 10. It is configured to blow air to the outside through the air outlet 10b. The heater 14 heats the air blown from the fan 12 to generate warm air. The detailed configuration in the vicinity of the air outlet 10b is the same as that of the conventional hand dryer, and will be omitted.

Further, inside the main body 10, there is a room temperature sensor 15 which is an example of an environmental temperature detection unit that detects the environmental temperature around the hair, and a humidity which is an example of the environmental humidity detection unit that detects the environmental humidity around the hair. A sensor 16 is provided.

On the front part of the main body 10, a hair detection unit 17 that detects whether or not the wind blown from the air blower 11 hits the hair, and a display that is an example of a transmission unit that transmits information on the dry state of the hair to the user. A portion 18 is provided.

In the present embodiment, the hair detection unit 17 has an infrared sensor which is an example of a non-contact temperature sensor. Based on the detection temperature of the infrared sensor, the hair detection unit 17 determines that the temperature of the hair is higher than the ambient temperature around the hair (detection temperature of the room temperature sensor 15) by a preset temperature (for example, 2 degrees) or more. When it is detected, it is determined that the wind is hitting the hair. It should be noted that the environmental temperature around the hair is used as a reference because it can be assumed that the temperature of the hair when it is not exposed to warm air (when it is not heated) is the same as or substantially the same as the environmental temperature around the hair. Because.

As shown in FIG. 1, a length input unit 19A for inputting a hair length and a hair amount input unit 19B for inputting a hair amount are provided on the upper part of the main body portion 10. The length input unit 19A is configured to be able to input the length of the hair in three stages of, for example, "short", "normal", and "long". The hair amount input unit 19B is configured to be able to input the amount of hair in three stages of, for example, "more", "normal", and "less".

The handle portion 20 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape. As shown in FIG. 2, the upper end portion 20a of the handle portion 20 is rotatably attached to the rear lower end portion 10c of the main body portion 10. A power cord 21 is connected to the lower end portion 20b of the handle portion 20. By connecting the power cord 21 to an external power source, electric power for driving the hair dryer 1 is supplied.

A switch 23, which is an example of the input unit, is provided on the front side surface of the handle unit 20. By operating the switch 23, the user can turn on / off the power supply, switch between hot air and cold air, switch the air volume, and the like.

Inside the handle unit 20, a control unit 22 for controlling the operation of each unit and each device is provided.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram relating to the control unit 22 of the hair dryer 1 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 22 includes a blower unit 11, a room temperature sensor 15, a humidity sensor 16, a hair detection unit 17, a display unit 18, a length input unit 19A, and a hair amount input unit 19B. And the switch 23 are electrically connected. The control unit 22 controls the drive of the blower unit 11 based on the input information input through the switch 23, the room temperature sensor 15, the humidity sensor 16, and the detection information of the hair detection unit 17. The control unit 22 includes a time measurement unit 24 and a determination unit 25.

The time measuring unit 24 measures the time when the hair detecting unit 17 detects that the wind hits the hair.

FIG. 4A is a graph showing the relationship between the drying time and the temperature of the hair. FIG. 4B is a graph showing the relationship between the drying time and the time measured by the time measuring unit 24. As shown in FIG. 4A, the temperature of the hair changes while the hair is being dried. Based on the detection temperature of the infrared sensor, the hair detection unit 17 determines that the wind hits the hair when the temperature of the hair is higher than the ambient temperature around the hair (detection temperature of the room temperature sensor 15) by a preset temperature or higher. to decide. As a result, the hair detection unit 17 can determine that the wind hits the hair without coming into contact with the hair. As shown in FIG. 4B, the time measuring unit 24 measures (integrates) the time when the hair detecting unit 17 detects (determines) that the wind hits the hair.

The determination unit 25 determines the dry state of the hair based on the time measured by the time measurement unit 24. In the present embodiment, the determination unit 25 determines the dry state of the hair based on whether or not the time measured by the time measurement unit 24 reaches at least one preset reference value (for example, 3 minutes). judge. This makes it possible to bring the entire hair into a more suitable dry state.

The display unit 18 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 displays information on the dry state of the hair based on the result determined by the determination unit 25. In this embodiment, the display unit 18 has at least one LED which is an example of a light emitting body. As shown in FIG. 5, the display unit 18 changes the color of the LED based on the result determined by the determination unit 25. Note that FIG. 5 shows the change in the color of the LED by the difference in the hatching interval for convenience of explanation.

For example, the display unit 18 changes the color of the LED to blue when the result determined by the determination unit 25 does not reach the reference value. On the other hand, the display unit 18 changes the color of the LED to red when the result determined by the determination unit 25 reaches the reference value. By checking the color of the LED, the user can visually know the progress of hair drying. As a result, the entire hair can be made into a more suitable dry state.

It is preferable that the determination unit 25 has a plurality of (for example, three) reference values and is configured to determine whether or not the time measured by the time measurement unit 24 has reached the reference value. .. In this case, by increasing the types of colors (for example, blue → green → yellow → red) displayed in order by the display unit 18 according to the result determined by the determination unit 25, the user can visually check the hair. You can know the progress of drying in more detail.

The display unit 18 may be configured to change the amount of light of the LED. This configuration also allows the user to visually know the progress of hair drying in more detail.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the display unit 18 has a plurality of (for example, eight) LEDs as an example of the plurality of light emitting bodies, and an LED that emits light based on the result determined by the determination unit 25. You may change it. In this case, for example, the LEDs may be turned on or off in order from the right side or the left side. Further, the LEDs to be lit may be changed in order from the right side or the left side. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the display unit 18 may be provided on the side surface of the main body unit 10 instead of the front portion. In this case, it is preferable that the display unit 18 is provided on both side surfaces of the main body unit 10 so that the display unit 18 can be seen regardless of whether the user has the handle unit 20 with his right hand or his left hand. This configuration also allows the user to visually know the progress of hair drying in more detail.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the display unit 18 may be provided with a 7-segment display and may be configured to digitally display information regarding the dry state of the hair. This configuration also allows the user to visually know the progress of hair drying in more detail.

According to the hair dryer 1 according to the present embodiment, the dry state of the hair is determined based on the time when the hair detecting unit 17 detects that the wind hits the hair, and the information regarding the dry state of the hair is transmitted to the user. It is configured as follows. Therefore, since the correlation between the dry state of the hair and the time when the wind hits the hair is high, the entire hair can be made into a more appropriate dry state.

Next, a case where the length of the hair is input to the length input unit 19A will be described.

When the length of the hair is different, the time required to blow the wind to the hair to make the whole hair optimally dry is also different. For example, if the length of the hair is long, the time required to apply the wind necessary for optimally drying the entire hair to the hair is short or longer than in the normal case.

Therefore, it is preferable that the determination unit 25 changes the reference value according to the length of the hair input by the length input unit 19A. As a result, the entire hair can be brought into a more appropriate dry state in consideration of the length of the hair.

Next, a case where the hair amount is input to the hair amount input unit 19B will be described.

Similar to the above-mentioned cases of different hair lengths, when the amount of hair is different, the time required for applying the wind necessary for optimally drying the entire hair to the hair is also different. For example, when the amount of hair is large, the time required to apply the wind necessary for optimally drying the entire hair to the hair is small or longer than in the normal case.

In this case, it is preferable that the determination unit 25 changes the reference value according to the amount of hair input by the hair amount input unit 19B. Thereby, the whole hair can be made into a more appropriate dry state in consideration of the amount of hair.

Further, depending on the user, the hair dryer 1 may be used so as to completely dry the hair on one side and then dry the hair on the other side. In such a case, while the hair on one side is exposed to the wind, the hair on the other side is naturally dried under the influence of the ambient temperature (room temperature) or the environmental humidity, and the entire hair is in an optimum dry state. It may reduce the amount of time it takes to blow the wind on the hair.

Therefore, it is preferable that the determination unit 25 changes the reference value according to the environmental temperature (room temperature) around the hair detected by the room temperature sensor 15. As a result, the entire hair can be brought into a more appropriate dry state in consideration of the environmental temperature around the hair.

Further, it is preferable that the determination unit 25 changes the reference value according to the environmental humidity around the hair detected by the humidity sensor 16. As a result, the entire hair can be brought into a more appropriate dry state in consideration of the environmental humidity around the hair.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be carried out in various other embodiments. For example, in the above embodiment, the display unit 18 has been described as an example of the transmission unit, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the transmission unit may be configured to transmit information regarding the dry state of the hair to the user by voice, vibration, or the like.

Further, in the above embodiment, the ambient temperature around the hair is detected by the room temperature sensor 15, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the environmental temperature around the hair may be detected by the infrared sensor of the hair detection unit 17. That is, the infrared sensor of the hair detection unit 17 may be configured to detect the temperature of the hair and the environmental temperature around the hair. Further, the control unit 22 may include a storage unit that stores in advance the temperature assumed to be the environmental temperature around the hair. With these configurations, it is possible to eliminate the need to provide the room temperature sensor 15.

Further, in the above embodiment, when the hair detection unit 17 detects that the temperature of the hair is higher than the ambient temperature of the hair by a preset temperature or higher based on the detection temperature of the infrared sensor, the wind blows the hair. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the hair detection unit 17 has a distance sensor instead of the infrared sensor, and when the detection distance of the distance sensor is shorter than a preset distance (for example, 30 cm), it is determined that the wind hits the hair. May be good. According to this configuration, it is determined that the wind hits the hair regardless of the temperature of the hair. Therefore, the hair detection unit 17 determines whether or not the wind hits the hair even if the wind blown from the blower unit 11 is cold. Can be detected.

By appropriately combining any of the various embodiments, the effects of each can be achieved.

Although the present invention has been fully described in connection with preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, various modifications and modifications are obvious to those skilled in the art. It should be understood that such modifications and modifications are included within the claims of the invention, as long as they do not deviate from the scope of the invention according to the appended claims.

The present invention is useful for commercial and household hair dryers because it can bring the entire hair into a more suitable dry state.

1 Hair dryer 10 Main body 10a Suction port 10b Blower 10c Rear lower end 11 Blower 12 Fan 13 Motor 14 Heater 15 Room temperature sensor 16 Humidity sensor 17 Hair detection 18 Display 19A Length input 19B Hair amount input 20 Handle Part 20a Upper end 20b Lower end 21 Power cord 22 Control unit 23 Switch 24 Hours measurement unit 25 Judgment unit

Claims (9)

The blower that blows the wind and the blower
A hair detection unit having a distance sensor or a non-contact temperature sensor that detects whether or not the wind blown from the air blowing unit hits the hair.
A time measuring unit that measures the time when the hair detecting unit detects that the wind hits the hair, and a time measuring unit.
Rather than the reference value based on the temperature of the hair, whether at least one reference value based on the time is preset it is, reached at least one reference value time said measured by the time measuring unit is the preset Judgment unit that determines the dry state of hair based on the temperature
A transmission unit that conveys the progress of hair drying to the user based on the result determined by the determination unit.
A hair dryer. The air blown from the blower unit is warm air, and is
The hair detection unit has a non-contact temperature sensor, and when it detects that the temperature of the hair is higher than the ambient temperature of the hair by a preset temperature or higher based on the detection temperature of the non-contact temperature sensor. The hair dryer according to claim 1, wherein it is determined that the wind hits the hair. The hair dryer according to claim 1, wherein the hair detecting unit has a distance sensor, and when the detection distance of the distance sensor is shorter than a preset distance, it is determined that the wind hits the hair. It also has a length input section to input the length of the hair.
The hair dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the determination unit changes the reference value according to the length of the hair input by the length input unit. Further equipped with a hair amount input unit for inputting the amount of hair,
The hair dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the determination unit changes the reference value according to the amount of hair input by the hair amount input unit. It also has an environmental temperature detector that detects the environmental temperature around the hair.
The hair dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the determination unit changes the reference value according to the environmental temperature detected by the environmental temperature detection unit. It also has an environmental humidity detector that detects the environmental humidity around the hair.
The hair dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the determination unit changes the reference value according to the environmental humidity detected by the environmental humidity detection unit. The hair dryer according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the transmission unit has a plurality of light emitting bodies, and the light emitting body to be emitted is changed based on the result determined by the determination unit. The hair according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , wherein the transmission unit has at least one light emitting body, and the light amount or color of the light emitting body is changed based on the result determined by the determination unit. Hairdryer.

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