JP7318448B2 - Automatic faucet device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic faucet system with a strainer.

Functional parts (including, for example, solenoid valves) of the automatic water faucet system may cause troubles such as failures due to the contamination of micro-size dust. In order to prevent this, strainers with finer mesh have been conventionally used than mechanical faucet devices such as so-called single lever faucets and thermo faucets. Conventionally, a fine mesh strainer is arranged between a stopcock or a functional part of an automatic water faucet device and the stopcock.

However, when arranging the strainer on the stop cock, it was necessary to prepare a dedicated stop cock different from the mechanical water faucet. In addition, when it is arranged between the function part of the automatic faucet device and the stop cock, when performing maintenance on such a strainer, it is necessary to remove the function part of the automatic faucet device from the stop cock. .

Note that Patent Documents 1 and 2 disclose the basic form of the functional part of the automatic faucet device.

JP-A-11-61918 JP 2018-53525 A

The inventors of the present invention have found that by adopting a tubular strainer, it is possible to realize a configuration in which only the strainer can be easily removed during maintenance or the like without using a dedicated stop cock.

On the other hand, if such an easily removable cylindrical strainer is employed, the strainer can be easily removed even in situations other than maintenance. For this reason, the inventor of the present invention came up with the idea of housing the strainer inside a housing (functional unit) housing the functional part so that the strainer is not tampered with by a third party.

However, if the housing is enlarged in order to accommodate not only the functional part but also the cylindrical strainer in the limited storage space of the housing, the storage space for the washstand or the like where the housing can be installed is squeezed. It will be inconvenient to install.

An object of the present invention is to make it possible to easily remove only a cylindrical strainer at the time of maintenance or the like, and to prevent the strainer from being tampered with by a third party. To provide an automatic faucet device which is housed and prevents the casing from becoming large.

The present invention comprises a housing, a flow path unit housed inside the housing, having a flow path therein and being attachable to and detachable from the front side of the housing, and a flow path unit housed inside the housing. a cylindrical strainer having a filtration part on at least a part of its peripheral surface; and a solenoid valve unit configured to shut off, wherein the upstream side of the flow path of the flow path unit communicates with the space outside the filtration portion of the cylindrical strainer, and the flow path unit The downstream side of the flow path communicates with the space inside the filtering portion of the tubular strainer, and the flow path of the flow path unit communicates with the filtering portion of the tubular strainer. an upward flow path extending upward from the rear end of the rearward flow path; and an upward flow path extending forward from the upper end of the upward flow path. , and a forward flow path connected to the electromagnetic valve unit.

According to the present invention, a cylindrical strainer is employed so that the upstream side of the flow channel of the flow channel unit communicates with the space outside the filtration portion of the cylindrical strainer, and the downstream side of the flow channel of the flow channel unit is connected. By adopting a configuration in which the inner side communicates with the filtering portion of the cylindrical strainer, it is possible to realize a layout in which only the strainer can be easily removed during maintenance or the like.
In addition, by housing the flow channel unit and the solenoid valve unit, which are the functional units, and the strainer inside the housing, the possibility of the strainer being tampered with by a third party can be reduced.
The flow path of the flow path unit includes a rearward flow path extending rearward from a space inside the filtering portion of the tubular strainer, and an upward flow path extending upward from the rear end of the rearward flow path. The flow path and the forward flow path extending forward from the upper end of the upward flow path and connected to the solenoid valve unit allow the strainer and the solenoid valve unit to be positioned forward inside the housing. The flow channel unit can be arranged in the space on the rear side inside the housing, and the flow channel unit and solenoid valve unit, which are functional parts, and the strainer can be placed in the housing without increasing the size of the housing. can be stored inside the

In the automatic water faucet device of the present invention, it is preferable that an external connection hole is provided in the lower portion of the upward flow path, and a closing cap is provided in the external connection hole.

The rearward flow path, the upward flow path, and the forward flow path provide the above-described effect that the functional part and the strainer can be housed inside the housing without increasing the size of the housing. However, in order to easily form such a "U-shaped" structure flow path, the automatic faucet device of the present invention is further characterized in that an external connection hole is provided in the lower part of the upward flow path. and That is, since the mold for forming the upward flow path can be removed from the external connection hole, the forming can be performed very easily.

Moreover, it is preferable that the automatic faucet device of the present invention further includes a face plate-shaped second strainer in the flow path of the flow path unit on the downstream side of the flow path of the flow path unit with respect to the strainer. .

The automatic faucet device of the present invention has the advantage that the strainer can be easily removed during maintenance, but there is a possibility that dust or the like will remain in the flow path when the strainer is removed and maintenance work is carried out. On the other hand, if a second strainer is provided on the downstream side of the strainer in the flow path of the flow path unit, it is possible to eliminate the concern that such dust may reach the functional parts on the further downstream side of the flow path. Moreover, by adopting a general faceplate-shaped strainer as the second strainer, the necessary space does not significantly increase.

Further, it is preferable that a constant flow valve is provided in the space inside the filtering portion of the cylindrical strainer.

According to this, the space inside the filtering portion of the cylindrical strainer can be effectively utilized, and the space-saving automatic faucet device as a whole can be realized.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily remove only the cylindrical strainer at the time of maintenance or the like, and the strainer is placed inside the housing housing the functional part so that the strainer is not tampered with by a third party. It is possible to provide an automatic faucet device that can be accommodated and that prevents the housing from becoming large.

1 is a schematic perspective cross-sectional view of an automatic faucet device according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the automatic faucet device of FIG. 1; FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view of the automatic faucet device of FIG. 1;

Next, an automatic faucet device according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(composition)
1 is a schematic perspective sectional view of an automatic faucet device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the automatic faucet device 1 of FIG. 1, and FIG. 1 is a front view of an automatic faucet device 1; FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment includes a generally rectangular parallelepiped housing 10 and a housing 10 attached from the front side (the right side in FIGS. 1 and 2). and removable channel units 20 and 30 .

The channel unit of this embodiment is composed of a water outlet side channel unit 20 and a water inlet side channel unit 30 . First, the water discharge side passage unit 20 can be attached to and detached from the housing 10 from the front side, and the water inlet side passage unit 30 can be attached to and removed from the water discharge side passage unit 20 from the front side. It is attachable and detachable.

More specifically, the upper two-step flange portion 20f of the water discharge side passage unit 20 is arranged so that the lower step portion 20s of the water discharge side passage unit 20 contacts the step portion 10s of the housing 10. The water discharge side channel unit 20 is attached to the housing 10 from the front side (the right side in FIGS. 1 and 2) so as to engage with the flange portion 10f of the housing 10 .

An upper rear fitting recess 30r of the water inlet side passage unit 30 is fitted to the front protrusion 20p of the water outlet side passage unit 20 via an O-ring 92 . Furthermore, this fitted state is maintained by engaging the restraining member 40 with the key hole 30h of the upper rear fitting recess 30r and the key groove 20k of the front protrusion 20p.

At this time, the projection 30p on the rear side of the water inlet side passage unit 30 is fitted into the fitting recess 10r of the housing 10, thereby assisting the positioning of the water inlet side passage unit 30. there is

The flow path of this embodiment consists of a first flow path 31 extending upward from the lower side of the housing 10 and a large diameter flow path extending rearward from the upper end of the first flow path 31 by the water inlet side flow path unit 30 . The second flow path 32 (backward flow path), the small-diameter third flow path 33 (backward flow path) that continues to the second flow path 32 and extends further rearward, and the third flow path 33 A fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path) extending upward from the rear end; a fifth flow path 35 (forward flow path) extending forward from the upper end of the fourth flow path 34; A sixth flow path 36 extending rearward by folding upward from the front end of the flow path 35 is formed. A valve seat 37 is formed at the inlet end of the sixth flow path 36 for a main valve element 51, which will be described later.

Furthermore, the flow path of this embodiment includes a seventh flow path 27 that communicates with the sixth flow path 36 (the central axis is offset) and further extends rearward by the water outlet side flow path unit 20, and an eighth flow path 28 extending from the rear end of the seventh flow path 27 to the upper side of the housing 10 is formed.

Further, in the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the electromagnetic valve unit 50 is attached to and detached from the front side with respect to the front end portions of the fifth flow path 35 and the sixth flow path 36 of the water inlet side flow path unit 30. It is possible.

More specifically, the solenoid valve unit 50 is inserted (fitted) into the upper front fitting recess 30 q of the water inlet side passage unit 30 via the O-ring 95 .

The solenoid valve unit 50 of this embodiment can open and close the pilot hole 56 by moving the pilot valve 54 by the magnetic force provided by the solenoid coil 55 .

When the pilot hole 56 is opened, the back pressure chamber 53 communicates with the sixth flow path 36 via the pilot passage 57, that is, the water in the back pressure chamber 53 flows out to the seventh flow path 27. , the back pressure in the back pressure chamber 53 is lowered, the diaphragm 52 is elastically deformed, and the main valve body 51 is separated from the valve seat 37, that is, the main valve body 51 is opened.

When the pilot hole 56 is closed, the communication between the back pressure chamber 53 and the pilot passage 57 is cut off, the back pressure in the back pressure chamber 53 returns to its original equilibrium state, and the main valve body 51 moves to the valve seat 37. It abuts, that is, the main valve body 51 is closed.

The second flow path 32 of the water inlet side flow path unit 30 has a substantially conical shape that gently tapers toward the left side in FIG. A second strainer 60 is inserted (fitted). The second strainer 60 adopts a general face plate shape (disc shape in this example).

Then, a cylindrical strainer 70 is inserted (fitted) into the second flow path 32 of the water inlet side flow path unit 30 from the front via two O-rings 97a and 97b so as to be adjacent to the second strainer 60. (combined).

The strainer 70 has a filtering portion 71 on at least a part of its peripheral surface, and the upstream side of the flow path (the second flow path 32) is located in a space outside the filtering portion 71 of the cylindrical strainer 70. While communicating, the downstream side of the flow path (the third flow path 33 ) communicates with the space 72 inside the filtering portion 71 of the cylindrical strainer 70 .

A constant flow valve 73 is provided in a space inside the filtering portion 71 of the strainer 70 and in a region on the side communicating with the third flow path 33 .

In addition, a substantially cylindrical external connection hole 30c is provided in the lower portion of the fourth flow path 34 of the water inlet side flow path unit 30, and the external connection hole 30c is closed via an O-ring 98. A cap 80 is screwed on.

(Action)
According to the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment described above, the cylindrical strainer 70 is employed, and the upstream side of the flow path (the second flow path 32 ) is relative to the filtering portion 71 of the strainer 70 While communicating with the outer space, the downstream side of the flow path (the third flow path 33) communicates with the space 72 inside the filtering portion 71 of the strainer 70. can be easily removed from the front side.

Further, according to the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the face plate-shaped second strainer 60 is provided on the downstream side of the strainer 70 in the second flow path 32 . As a result, even if there is a possibility that dust or the like remains in the second flow path 32 when performing maintenance work after removing the strainer 70 , such dust or the like is captured by the second strainer 60 . Therefore, it is prevented from reaching further downstream functional units (specifically, the solenoid valve unit 50). In addition, since the second strainer 60 is in the form of a general face plate, the required space does not significantly increase.

Further, according to the automatic water faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the solenoid valve unit 50 that opens or closes the channel of the channel unit by opening and closing the solenoid valve (the main valve body 51 via the pilot valve 54) is connected to the water inlet. It can be attached to and detached from the front end of the fifth channel 35 and the sixth channel 36 of the side channel unit 30 (the valve seat 37 and the main valve body 51 are aligned). As a result, it is easy to remove the solenoid valve unit 50 at the time of maintenance or the like, and the maintenance work of the solenoid valve unit 50 or the like is easy.

Further, according to the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the flow path of the water inlet side flow path unit 30 is the second flow extending rearward from the space inside the filtering portion 71 of the cylindrical strainer 70 . a channel 32 and a third channel 33 (backward channel); a fourth channel 34 (upward channel) extending upward from the rear end of the third channel 33 (backward channel); and a fifth flow path 35 (forward flow path) extending forward from the upper end of the fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path), and the solenoid valve unit 50 is a forward flow path. It is attachable to and detachable from the front end of the fifth channel 35 .

As a result, it is possible to prevent the flow path of the water inlet side flow path unit 30 from protruding forward. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, it is possible to adopt a layout in which the electromagnetic valve unit 50 and the strainer 70 are arranged side by side in the vertical direction, and it is possible to realize the automatic faucet system 1 with a good size balance as a whole. can.

Further, according to the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the external connection hole 30c is provided in the lower part of the fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path), and the closure cap 80 is attached to the external connection hole 30c. is provided.

When molding a resin part by injection molding, it is necessary to place a core in the hollow portion. Of course, the core eventually needs to be slid out of the part. Since the fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path) has bent flow paths at both ends thereof, even if the core is arranged, it cannot be pulled out by sliding. This is the so-called "pruning" problem.
However, by providing the external connection hole 30c in the lower part of the fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path) as in the present embodiment, the core can be extracted, and the water inlet side flow path unit 30 (In particular, integrally forming the second flow path 32 and the third flow path 33 (rearward flow path), the fourth flow path 34 (upward flow path), and the fifth flow path (forward flow path) 35) It is easy to do.

Further, according to the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the constant flow valve 73 is provided in the space inside the filtering portion 71 of the tubular strainer 70 .

As a result, the space inside the filtration portion 71 of the cylindrical strainer 70 can be effectively utilized, and the automatic water faucet device 1 can be realized as a whole with a reduced space.

In addition, in the automatic faucet device 1 of the present embodiment, the outflow-side channel unit 20 can be replaced with a channel unit of a type equipped with a generator for generating water flow power. Therefore, the housing 1 is provided with a substantially cylindrical space 10v (see FIG. 3).

1 Automatic Faucet Device 10 Housing 10f Flange 10r Fitting Recess 10s Step 10v Approximately Cylindrical Space 20 Outflow Side Flow Path Unit 20f Flange 20k Key Groove 20p Forward Projection 20s Step 27 Seventh Flow Path 28 Eighth flow path 30 Water inlet side flow path unit 30c External connection hole 30h Key hole 30p Protruding portion 30q Upper front side fitting recess 30r Upper rear side fitting recess 31 First flow path 32 Second flow path 33 Third flow path 34 Fourth flow path 35 Fifth flow path 36 Sixth flow path 37 Valve seat 40 Member 50 Solenoid valve unit 51 Main valve body 52 Diaphragm 53 Back pressure chamber 54 Pilot valve 55 Electromagnetic coil 56 Pilot hole 57 Pilot passage 60 Second strainer 70 Strainer 71 Filtration part 72 Space 73 Constant flow valve 80 Blocking cap 92 O-ring 95 O-ring 96 O-ring 97a O-ring 97b O-ring 98 O-ring

Claims (4)

a housing;
a channel unit that is housed inside the housing, has a channel therein, and is attachable to and detachable from the housing from the front side;
a cylindrical strainer that is housed inside the housing and has a filtering part on at least a part of its peripheral surface;
a solenoid valve unit that is housed inside the housing, has a solenoid valve, and connects or blocks the channel of the channel unit by opening and closing the solenoid valve;
with
The upstream side of the flow path of the flow path unit communicates with the space outside the filtering section of the tubular strainer, and the downstream side of the flow path of the flow path unit communicates with the filtering section of the tubular strainer. It is designed to communicate with the inner space against
The channel of the channel unit is
a rearward flow path extending rearward from a space inside the filtering portion of the cylindrical strainer;
an upward flow path extending upward from a rear end of the rearward flow path;
a forward flow path extending forward from an upper end of the upward flow path and connected to the electromagnetic valve unit;
An automatic faucet device comprising: An external connection hole is provided in the lower part of the upward flow path,
2. The automatic faucet apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said external connection hole is provided with a closing cap. 3. The automatic faucet according to claim 2, further comprising a second strainer in the form of a face plate in the flow channel of the flow channel unit downstream of the strainer in the flow channel of the flow channel unit. Device. 4. The automatic faucet apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a constant flow valve is provided in the space inside the filtering portion of the tubular strainer.

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