JP7104617B2 - Bath water heater - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a bath water heater, and more particularly to a bath water heater that grasps and notifies the situation of a person in the bathroom.

Conventionally, a charcoal sensor that detects the presence or absence of a person in the bathroom, a water level sensor that detects the presence or absence of a person in the bathtub, and a kitchen remote control installed in a place other than the bathroom are provided, and the detection result of the water level sensor can be obtained. Based on this, it determines whether or not a person has taken a bath, and by detecting the presence of a person with a charcoal sensor, it grasps and notifies the situation of the person in the bathroom and prevents the elderly from bathing accidents. was. (For example, Patent Document 1)

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2018-71859

Today, the number of bathers, especially the elderly and the physically handicapped, tends to increase, and the degree of disability varies from person to person. For example, a person who is bedridden due to a severe disability is asked to have a care staff wash his / her body in a bathing facility exclusively for the disabled at a care facility or the like. In addition, people with mild disabilities (such as those who cannot use only one arm) can take a bath by themselves but cannot only put on and take off clothes, so the family will assist in putting on and taking off clothes. The family member in charge of caregiving had to visit the bathroom many times to check until the bather took a bath.

In order to solve the above problems, in the present invention, a bathing sensor that detects the presence or absence of a person in the bathtub and a bathing / exiting sensor are used.
An out-of-bathroom display means installed in a place other than the bathroom,
A bathing / exiting determination means for determining a person's bathing and bathing based on the detection result of the bathing / exiting sensor, and
When the bathing determination means determines that the person has taken a bath after bathing, a timer for starting counting and
It is provided with an entrance / exit display control means for displaying the elapsed time after bathing by counting the timer on the outside bathroom display means.

In the present invention, the caregiver can check the time after taking a bath with the kitchen remote controller, so that the caregiver does not have to go to the bathroom many times.
In addition, a caregiver can visit the bathroom at a timing according to the wishes of the bather.
In addition, the timer can be cleared by automatically stopping the display at the second predetermined time after taking a bath.
In addition, unnecessary display can be prevented and power consumption during standby can be reduced.

Schematic system configuration diagram of the bath water heater in this embodiment. The same control configuration diagram. The same flowchart. A time chart diagram illustrating the same operation.

An embodiment of the hot water supply device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic system configuration diagram of the hot water storage type bath water heater 1 in the present embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a control configuration diagram of the hot water storage type bath water heater 1.

The hot water storage tank unit 3 has a hot water storage tank 11 for storing hot water. The hot water storage tank 11 has a plurality of hot water storage temperature sensors 12 for detecting the hot water storage temperature in the hot water storage tank 11 in the vertical direction of the side surface. A water supply pipe 13 for supplying city water to the hot water storage tank 11 is connected to the bottom of the hot water storage tank 11. The water supply pipe 13 has a pressure reducing valve 14 that reduces the water supply pressure of city water to a constant pressure. Further, an overpressure relief valve 16 for releasing the overpressure in the hot water storage tank 11 is connected to the top of the hot water storage tank 11.

A hot water discharge pipe 18 for hot water to be discharged from the hot water storage tank 11 is connected to the top of the hot water storage tank 11. The hot water outlet pipe 18 is connected to the water supply bypass pipe 20 branched from the water supply pipe 13 via the hot water supply mixing valve 19. The water supply bypass pipe 20 has a water supply temperature sensor 25 that detects the water supply temperature.

The hot water supply mixing valve 19 mixes the hot water from the water supply bypass pipe 20 and the hot water from the hot water outlet pipe 18 so as to reach the hot water supply set temperature. The hot water supply mixing valve 19 is connected to the hot water supply pipe 24, and the hot water mixed by the hot water supply mixing valve 19 is guided to the shower 8 and the curan 9 by the hot water supply pipe 24. The hot water supply pipe 24 includes a hot water supply flow rate sensor 26, a hot water supply temperature sensor 27, and a flow rate adjusting valve 28. The hot water supply flow rate sensor 26 and the hot water supply temperature sensor 27 detect the flow rate and temperature of hot water flowing through the hot water supply pipe 24, respectively. The flow rate adjusting valve 28 adjusts (limits) the flow rate of hot water flowing through the hot water supply pipe 24 by adjusting the opening degree.

The hot water supply pipe 24 is connected to a hot water beam pipe 32 that supplies hot water to the bath circulation circuit 40. The hot water beam pipe 32 has a hot water beam flow rate sensor 33, a hot water beam temperature sensor 34, and a hot water beam on-off valve 35. The hot water flow rate sensor 33 and the hot water temperature sensor 34 detect the flow rate and temperature of hot water supplied from the hot water pipe 32, respectively. The hot water beam on-off valve 35 is a solenoid valve that opens and closes the hot water beam pipe 32.

The hot water storage tank unit 3 has a bath circulation circuit 40 that circulates the hot water (bath water) of the bathtub 7 between the bathtub 7 and the bath heat exchanger 41. The bath circulation circuit 40 mainly includes a return pipe 42, a bath heat exchanger 41, and an outgoing pipe 43. The return pipe 42 returns the bath water to the bath heat exchanger 41. The bath heat exchanger 41 is provided in the upper part of the hot water storage tank 11, and heats the bath water with the heat of the hot water in the hot water storage tank 11. The going pipe 43 supplies the hot water heated by the bath heat exchanger 41 to the bathtub 7 side.

The bath circulation circuit 40 has a heat exchange bypass pipe 46 that bypasses the return pipe 42 and the outgoing pipe 43 via the bath three-way valve 45. The bath three-way valve 45 switches between circulating hot water from the return pipe 42 to the bath heat exchanger 41 and bypassing it to the outgoing pipe 43.

Further, the return pipe 42 has a water level sensor 48, a bath temperature sensor 49, and a bath circulation pump 50. The water level sensor 48 detects the water level in the bathtub 7 by detecting the pressure from the bathtub 7. The water level sensor 48 is provided as an entrance / exit sensor for detecting the presence / absence of a person in the bathtub 7. The bath temperature sensor 49 detects the temperature of the circulating hot water. The bath circulation pump 50 circulates bath water in the bath circulation circuit 40. The going pipe 43 has a flowing water switch 51 that detects the presence or absence of circulation of bath water in the bath circulation circuit 40.

The hot water storage tank unit 3 has a hot water storage control unit 55 that electrically controls the hot water storage tank unit 3. The hot water storage control unit 55 has a logic circuit such as an MPU, and electrically controls the hot water storage tank unit 3 according to a program stored in advance while referring to the memory. That is, the hot water storage control unit 55 includes a hot water storage temperature sensor 12, a water supply temperature sensor 25, a hot water supply flow rate sensor 26, a hot water supply temperature sensor 27, a hot water flow rate sensor 33, a hot water supply temperature sensor 34, a water level sensor 48, a bath temperature sensor 49, and The detection value of the flowing water switch 51 is acquired, and the operation of various valves of the hot water storage tank unit 3 is controlled based on the detection value. Further, the hot water storage control unit 55 receives a user's instruction via the bath remote controller 5 and the kitchen remote controller 10, controls each unit, and executes the instruction. That is, the hot water storage control unit 55 executes the hot water supply operation, the automatic bath operation, the bath repelling operation, and the like based on the hot water supply set temperature, the bath set temperature, the set hot water amount, and the like instructed by the bath remote controller 5 and the kitchen remote controller 10. The hot water storage control unit 55 has a timer that counts the time after bathing in the bathing / leaving notification process (FIG. 3) described later.

The hot water storage tank unit 3 is connected to the heat pump unit 4 that boil the hot water in the hot water storage tank 11 mainly in the midnight time zone via the heating going pipe 65 and the heating return pipe 66. The heat pump unit 4 has these heating forward pipes 65 and heating return pipes 66, a refrigerant circuit 61, a heating control unit 62, and an outside air temperature sensor 63.

The heating going pipe 65 circulates hot water taken out from the bottom of the hot water storage tank 11. The heating outbound pipe 65 includes a heating circulation pump 64 that supplies hot water from the hot water storage tank 11, and a water inlet temperature sensor 69 that detects the temperature of hot water flowing into the refrigerant water heat exchanger 68 from the heating outbound pipe 65. There is. The heating return pipe 66 returns the hot water heated by the heat pump unit 4 to the upper part of the hot water storage tank 11. The heating return pipe 66 has a boiling temperature sensor 70 that detects the temperature of the hot water flowing out from the refrigerant water heat exchanger 68 to the heating return pipe 66.

The refrigerant circuit 61 is a circuit in which a compressor 71, a refrigerant water heat exchanger 68, an expansion valve 72, and an evaporator 73 are cyclically connected by a refrigerant cycle pipe 74. The compressor 71 compresses the refrigerant into a high-temperature refrigerant. The refrigerant water heat exchanger 68 exchanges heat between the high temperature refrigerant and the hot water from the hot water storage tank 11. The expansion valve 72 decompresses the refrigerant radiated by the refrigerant water heat exchanger 68 to obtain a low-temperature low-pressure refrigerant. The evaporator 73 evaporates the low temperature and low pressure refrigerant. Further, outside air, which is a heat source, is blown to the evaporator 73 by the blower 75.

The outside air temperature sensor 63 detects the outdoor outside air temperature in which the heat pump unit 4 is installed. The heating control unit 62 has a logic circuit such as an MPU, and electrically controls the heat pump unit 4 according to a program stored in advance while referring to a memory. That is, the heating control unit 62 acquires the detection values of the water entry temperature sensor 69, the boiling temperature sensor 70, and the outside air temperature sensor 63, and controls the operation of the refrigerant circuit 61 and the like.

The bathroom 6 is provided with a bathtub 7, a shower 8, and a bath remote controller 5. The bath remote controller 5 is provided as a bathroom notification means installed in the bathroom. The bath remote controller 5 has a display unit 91, a speaker 92, switches 93, and a communication unit 94. The display unit 91 displays various information regarding the hot water supply device 1 (hot water supply set temperature, bath set temperature, bath set hot water amount, residual hot water amount, operating state of the hot water supply device 1 and the like). The switches 93 include an automatic bath operation switch, a setting switch, a menu switch, and the like. The setting switch accepts instructions for setting the hot water supply set temperature, the bath set temperature, and the bath set hot water amount. The bath automatic operation switch receives an instruction to start or stop the automatic bath operation. In the automatic bath operation, the hot water in the bathtub 7 is automatically heated to reach the set water level and temperature based on the bath set temperature and the amount of hot water, and after the hot water filling is completed, the heat retention time elapses to maintain the set water level and temperature. It automatically keeps warm until it is done. The menu switch calls a hierarchical menu setting screen for making detailed settings for the hot water supply device 1. The communication unit 94 (intercom) communicates with the kitchen remote controller 10 to make a call between the person in the bathroom 6 and the person in the kitchen.

The bath remote controller 5 has a logic circuit such as an MPU, and has a bath remote controller control unit 97 that electrically controls the bath remote controller 5 according to a program stored in advance while referring to a memory. The bath remote controller control unit 97 receives an instruction signal of the switches 93 and a signal from the hot water storage control unit 55, and causes the display unit 91 to display necessary information predetermined.

The shower 8 and the faucet 9 are provided in the bathroom 6 or in the kitchen or washroom outside the bathroom 6. The hot water supply pipe 24 is branched on the downstream side of the flow rate adjusting valve 28, and supplies hot water in parallel to the shower 8 provided in the bathroom 6 and the faucets 9 in various places.

The kitchen remote controller 10 is a remote controller installed in the kitchen as an out-bathroom notification means (out-bathroom display means) installed in a place other than the bathroom. The kitchen remote controller 10 has a display unit 101, a speaker 102, switches 103, a telephone unit 104, and a display selection unit 105 having substantially the same functions as the bath remote controller 5. The kitchen remote controller 10 has a logic circuit such as an MPU, and has a kitchen remote controller control unit 107 (bathing / bath display control means) that electrically controls the kitchen remote controller 10 according to a program stored in advance while referring to a memory. ing. The kitchen remote controller control unit 107 receives an instruction signal of the switches 103 and a signal from the hot water storage control unit 55, and causes the display unit 101 to display necessary information predetermined. The display selection unit 105 selects a display such as bathing, bathing, and time after bathing according to the operation of the switches 103. The hot water storage control unit 55, the heating control unit 62, the bath remote control control unit 97, and the kitchen remote control control unit 107 are connected to each other so as to be able to transmit and receive necessary information.

The hot water supply device 1 in the present embodiment can grasp the situation of a person in the bathroom 6 and notify a person outside the bathroom 6 such as a cohabitant to that effect. That is, it is possible to preferably detect the entry and exit of a person into the bathtub 7 and notify the person outside the bathroom 6 to that effect via the kitchen remote controller 10. Hereinafter, the bathing in and out of the bathtub 7 and the display associated therewith will be specifically described as the bathtub notification processing.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the bathing / leaving notification process executed by the hot water supply device 1 in the present embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a time chart for explaining the operation of the person in the bathroom 6, the water level sensor 48, the timer, and the display of the kitchen remote controller 10 when notifying the arrival of the notification time in the process of FIG.

In step S1, the hot water storage control unit 55 determines whether or not a person has bathed in the bathtub 7 based on the detection result of the water level sensor 48. For example, the hot water storage control unit 55 acquires the detection result of the water level sensor 48 at a predetermined cycle (for example, every 500 ms), and the moving average value of the detection result for the obtained predetermined time (for example, 3 seconds) (hereinafter, simply ". "Current water level") is calculated and stored. The hot water storage control unit 55 compares the newly obtained current water level with the current water level before a predetermined time (for example, 30 seconds before) (hereinafter, simply referred to as “comparative water level”). The hot water storage control unit 55 determines that a person has bathed in the bathtub 7 when the current water level ≥ the comparative water level + a predetermined value (for example, 3 cm) is established. The predetermined value is determined in consideration of the water level that increases with the volume of a person. When the hot water storage control unit 55 determines that the bath is not bathed, the hot water storage control unit 55 waits until the bath is detected. (No in step S1)

When the hot water storage control unit 55 determines that the bather has taken a bath in the bathing detection step S1, in step S2 in Yes, the hot water storage control unit 55 informs the person outside the bathroom 6 that the bather has taken a bath in the bathtub 7 via the kitchen remote controller 10. In order to notify, "in bathing" is displayed on the display unit 101 of the kitchen remote controller 10, and the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, the hot water storage control unit 55 determines whether or not a person has taken a bath from the bathtub 7 based on the detection result of the water level sensor 48. For example, the hot water storage control unit 55 determines that a person has taken a bath from the bathtub 7 when the current water level ≤ comparative water level − predetermined value is satisfied. When the hot water storage control unit 55 determines that the bath is not bathed, the hot water storage control unit 55 waits until the bath is detected. (No in step S3)

When bathing is detected in step S3, the timer count is started in step S4, and "bathing" is displayed on the display unit 101 of the kitchen remote controller 10, so that a person has taken a bath from the bathtub 7. Inform the family in the kitchen and proceed to step S5. In step S5, it is determined whether the bather washes his / her body in the washing place or re-bathing after a break. If re-bathing is detected, Yes to return to step S2, and if there is no re-bathing, No to proceed to step S6.

In step S6, it is determined whether the elapsed time of the timer has reached 10 minutes of the first predetermined time. If 10 minutes have passed in step S6, proceed to step S7 with Yes and display the kitchen remote controller 10 as "A minutes after bathing" or "A minutes have passed after bathing" (A is the timer count time). Is changed, and the process proceeds to step S8. If the timer count is less than 10 minutes in step S6, it waits until 10 minutes is detected with No.

In step S8, it is determined whether or not to re-bath in the same manner as in step S5. If re-bathing is detected, Yes to return to step S2, and if there is no re-bathing, No to proceed to step S9.

In step S9, it is determined whether the elapsed time of the timer has reached 90 minutes of the second predetermined time. When 90 minutes have passed in step S9, Yes proceeds to step S10 to clear the timer, the display of the kitchen remote controller 10 is terminated (turned off), and the process is terminated in step 11.

Between steps S7 and S9, the bather exits bathroom 6, wipes his body at the dressing room, and then wears pajamas to finish the bath. If you can take a bath in the bath but cannot only put on and take off your clothes, your family will need to help you with your clothes. The caregiving family knows the bathing habits of the bather every day (after entering the bathtub 7 for 8 minutes, washing the body for 10 minutes in the washing place, taking a bath again for 10 minutes, and then taking a bath, etc.), so the kitchen remote control You can go to the bathroom 7 and provide assistance at a reasonable time by looking at the display of 10. This eliminates the need for the family member in charge of caregiving to visit the bathroom many times to check until the bather takes a bath.

In addition, even if the bather takes a bath with a bathing pattern different from the daily habit such as "I want to take a bath slowly and for a long time today" before taking a bath, the caregiving can use the kitchen remote control 10 to set the time after taking a bath. By checking, it is possible to provide assistance at an appropriate timing. Further, by automatically stopping the display and clearing the timer at the second predetermined time (90 minutes) after taking a bath, it is possible to prevent unnecessary display and reduce the power consumption during standby. In addition, it is possible to prevent only the display related to bathing and bathing from being performed by the selection by the display selection unit 105. As a result, it is possible to prevent an unnecessary display from being displayed by a user of a household who does not have an elderly person or a physically handicapped person. Further, the setting to the display selection unit 105 can be arbitrarily changed, and the display may be performed by operating the switches 103. Further, the display may be performed only when the switches 103 are pressed.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the caregiver can check the time after taking a bath with the kitchen remote controller 10, the caregiver does not have to go to the bathroom many times. In addition, a caregiver can visit the bathroom at a timing according to the wishes of the bather. In addition, the timer can be cleared by automatically stopping the display at the second predetermined time after taking a bath. In addition, unnecessary display can be prevented and power consumption during standby can be reduced.

Further, in the present embodiment, the first predetermined time is set to 10 minutes and the second predetermined time is set to 90 minutes, but the user may arbitrarily change the predetermined time. Further, the kitchen remote controller 10 may issue an alarm at the timing of bathing or bathing to notify the family of the behavior of the bather.

Further, the other configurations used in the present embodiment are presented as an example, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention, and can be implemented in various other embodiments. Various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are also included in the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

1 Hot water storage type bath water heater (hot water heater)
3 Hot water storage tank unit 4 Heat pump unit 5 Bath remote control 6 Bathroom 7 Bathtub 10 Kitchen remote control 48 Water level sensor 55 Hot water storage control unit 91, 101 Display unit 92, 102 Speaker 93, 103 Switches 94, 104 Call unit 97 Bath remote control control unit 105 Display Selection unit 107 Kitchen remote control unit

Claims (3)

An entrance / exit sensor that detects the presence or absence of people in the bathtub,
An out-of-bathroom display means installed in a place other than the bathroom,
A bathing / exiting determination means for determining a person's bathing and bathing based on the detection result of the bathing / exiting sensor, and
When the bathing determination means determines that the person has taken a bath after bathing, a timer for starting counting and
A bath hot water supply device including an entry / exit display control means for displaying the elapsed time after taking a bath by counting the timer on the out-of-bathroom display means. The bathing / exiting display control means starts displaying the elapsed time after bathing on the out-of-bathroom display means after the first predetermined time of bathing has elapsed, and the elapsed time after bathing after the second predetermined time of bathing has elapsed. The bath water heater according to claim 1, wherein the display of the time is finished. The bath water heater according to claim 1, wherein the elapsed time after taking a bath is displayed on the outside-bathroom display means in response to the operation of the outside-bathroom display means.

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