JP7447391B2 - Bathtub cleaning device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a bathtub cleaning device, and more particularly to a bathtub cleaning device that is provided with a buffer plate that suppresses shaking of the water surface caused by hot water supplied to a hot water storage section that stores hot water for cleaning.

As a bathtub cleaning device, tap water from a tap water source is stored in a storage tank, and the water in the storage tank is pressurized by a pump and sprayed together with detergent from an injection nozzle on the bathtub side to clean the inner surface of the bathtub. A cleaning method is known.

For example, in the bathtub cleaning device described in Patent Document 1, tap water from a tap water source is stored in an atmosphere-opening tank, and the water in the atmosphere-opening tank is pressurized by a pump, and the water is sent together with detergent from an injection pipe on the bathtub side to the bathtub. Cleans the inner surface of the bathtub by spraying it on the inner surface.

In the bathtub cleaning device described in Patent Document 2, tap water from a tap water source is stored in a detergent mixing tank to which detergent is supplied, and the detergent mixed water in the detergent mixing tank is pressurized by a pump and sprayed onto the bottom of the bathtub. The inner surface of the bathtub is cleaned by spraying it from the nozzle onto the inner surface of the bathtub.

The detergent mixing tank of this bathtub cleaning device has an inclined groove with an inclined bottom formed at the bottom of the detergent mixing tank, and the water supplied to the detergent mixing tank is allowed to fall onto the inclined bottom of the inclined groove to slow down the water and mix the water and detergent. The structure is designed to prevent air from entering when mixing with.

However, recently, bathtub cleaning devices that do not directly clean with tap water but use hot water and detergent supplied from a water heater have also been adopted.
For example, in the bathtub cleaning device described in Patent Document 3, hot water supplied from a water heater is stored in a hot water tank, and a cleaning pipe and pump are provided to supply the hot water to a cleaning nozzle provided at the bottom of the bathtub. A detergent tank is installed near the bathtub so that the detergent from the detergent tank can be supplied to the cleaning pipe, and while the hot water in the hot water tank is being supplied to the bathtub by the pump and the cleaning pipe, the detergent is supplied to the cleaning pipe and the detergent is added. The inside of the bathtub is cleaned by force-feeding hot water to the cleaning nozzle.

Publication number 4-406632 JP2020-69383A JP 2019-58643 Publication

Since the device of Patent Document 2 prevents air from being mixed in when water and detergent are mixed, it cannot be applied to a hot water storage section that stores only hot water.

When a bathtub cleaning device in Patent Document 3 is provided with a hot water storage section that stores only hot water without mixing detergent and stores hot water from a water heater in the hot water storage section via an electromagnetic on-off valve, the hot water When the flow velocity is high and the water surface within the hot water storage section is shaken violently, there is a problem in that the detection accuracy of the water level detection by the water level detection means deteriorates.

In particular, in the case of a water heater where the water pressure of the hot water dispensed from the water heater fluctuates depending on the water pressure of the water source, when the water pressure of the water source is high, the flow rate of hot water filling the hot water storage section increases, so that the water surface level increases. The shaking becomes violent.

In addition, if the water level in the hot water storage section is low and the water surface is shaking violently, the pump that feeds hot water from the hot water storage section to the cleaning nozzle may suck air, and this air trapping may reduce the cleaning performance. There is also.

An object of the present invention is to provide a bathtub cleaning device that is provided with a buffer plate that suppresses shaking of the water surface caused by hot water supplied to a hot water storage section that stores hot water for cleaning.

The bathtub cleaning device according to claim 1 includes: a hot water storage section that is provided in the middle of a hot water passage that supplies hot water to the cleaning nozzle and is capable of storing hot water supplied from the hot water passage; and a hot water storage section that sends hot water from this hot water storage section to the cleaning nozzle. In a bathtub cleaning device equipped with a pump capable of supplying hot water, the hot water storage section includes a water supply port through which hot water flows from upstream, a discharge port through which hot water is discharged to be sent to the pump, and a water level of hot water stored inside the bathtub cleaning device. water level detection means for detecting the water level; and a buffer plate for suppressing shaking of the water surface due to hot water flowing from the water supply port, the buffer plate including a vertical plate extending vertically between the water supply port and the water level detection means; It is characterized by having a horizontal plate located below the water supply port.

According to the above configuration, the hot water storage section includes a water supply port, a discharge port, a water level detection means, and a buffer plate. The detection accuracy will not decrease.

Since the buffer plate has a vertical plate extending vertically between the water supply port and the water level detection means, it is possible to effectively suppress hot water falling from the water supply port from scattering toward the water level detection means.
In addition, since the buffer plate has a horizontal plate located below the water inlet, the horizontal plate catches and buffers hot water falling from the water inlet, effectively suppressing shaking of the water surface caused by hot water flowing in from the water inlet. can do.

A bathtub cleaning device according to a second aspect of the invention is characterized in that, in the invention according to the first aspect, the discharge port is located closer to the water level detection means than the vertical plate of the buffer plate.
According to the above configuration, since the above-mentioned vertical plate exists between the water supply port and the discharge port, the shaking of the water surface near the discharge port is suppressed by the hot water falling from the water supply port. can be prevented.

In the bathtub cleaning device according to claim 3, in the invention according to claim 1 or 2, an electromagnetic on-off valve is provided in the hot water passage through which hot water is supplied to the hot water storage section, and an electromagnetic on-off valve is provided above the electromagnetic on-off valve and the hot water storage section. A channel-forming case body formed in a flat box shape is provided across the channel, and the buffer plate is fixed to the channel-forming case body.
According to the above configuration, the buffer plate is fixed to the flow path forming case body that extends above the electromagnetic on-off valve and the hot water storage part, so the fixing structure for fixing the buffer plate is simplified. .

As described above, the present invention has various effects.

1 is a configuration diagram of a hot water supply device, a bathtub, a bathtub cleaning device, etc. according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the cleaning unit. FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the flow path forming case body. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view (a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in FIG. 3) of the flow path forming case body. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line VV in FIG. 3. FIG.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the form for implementing this invention is demonstrated based on drawing.
As shown in FIG. 1, a hot water supply device 2 for filling and reheating the bathtub 1 is connected to the bathtub 1 via a hot water filling and reheating piping 3, and the piping 3 is connected to the circulation adapter 1a of the bathtub 1. has been done. Further, at the bottom of the bathtub 1, there is a drain plug 4 for automatically draining hot water and operated by an operation part 4a, and a cleaning nozzle for cleaning the bathtub 1 by spraying detergent and hot water. 5 are arranged. The bathtub 1 is covered with a lid (not shown).

A cleaning unit 6 that supplies detergent and hot water to the cleaning nozzle 5 and a detergent tank 7 that stores detergent are disposed near the bathtub 1. The bathtub cleaning device 10 has a supply unit 6, a detergent tank 7, and a cleaning nozzle 5, and is configured by connecting these with a plurality of piping.

A detergent pipe 7a for supplying detergent from a detergent tank 7 and a hot water supply pipe 2a for supplying hot water from the hot water supply device 2 are connected to the cleaning unit 6. A level sensor 7b is provided in the detergent tank 7, and its detection signal is supplied to the power supply communication unit 8. Further, the power communication unit 8 and the cleaning unit 6, which are arranged on the ceiling of the bathroom, for example, are connected to equipment inside the cleaning unit 6 by a signal line or the like.
It is connected.

The water heater 2 is a combustion type water heater that receives tap water W and supplies hot water heated using, for example, combustion heat of fuel, but it may also be a water heater or the like having a heat pump type heat source device. A bathroom remote controller 11 and a kitchen remote controller 12 are communicatively connected to the water heater 2 to perform operations such as starting a hot water filling operation or reheating operation, and setting a hot water supply temperature setting. Further, a cleaning remote controller 13 for performing operations such as starting a cleaning operation by the bathtub cleaning device 10 is connected to the control section 21 of the power supply communication unit 8.

The hot water supply device 2 and the power supply communication unit 8 are connected by a cord 8b that is a bundle of a power supply cord for power supply and a communication cord. It is possible to communicate with Further, the kitchen remote controller 12 and the bathroom remote controller 11 can also communicate with the bathtub cleaning device 10. The kitchen remote control 12 includes a touch-operable display section 12a and an audio output section 12b. The cleaning remote control 13 has a two-digit number display section 13a and an audio output section 13b.

The kitchen remote controller 12 and the cleaning remote controller 13 are operating terminals for starting the cleaning operation by the bathtub cleaning device 10. Note that the bathroom remote controller 11 can also be used to start the cleaning operation of the bathtub cleaning device 10.

The cleaning unit 6 of the bathtub cleaning device 10 includes a storage tank 22 (hot water storage section) that stores hot water, and a hot water supply pipe 23 (corresponding to a part of the hot water passage) that is connected to the hot water supply pipe 2a and supplies hot water to the storage tank 22. A hot water supply pipe 23 having two branch passages 23a and 23b and a merging passage 23c where the branch passages 23a merge (the downstream end is connected to the storage tank 22), and this hot water supply pipe. 23, an electromagnetic on-off valve 25a and a constant flow valve 26a, which are installed in one branch passage 23a in order from the upstream side, and an electromagnetic valve 25a and a constant flow valve 26a, which are installed in the other branch passage 23b in order from the upstream side. It has an on-off valve 25b and a constant flow valve 26b.

The storage tank 22 is provided with a float-type water level detector 22 a that can detect low and high water levels, and its detection signal is supplied to the control unit 21 . An overflow pipe 22b (see FIG. 1) extending from the storage tank 22 is also provided. Note that an electrode type water level detector may be used instead of the water level detector 22a.

Furthermore, the cleaning unit 6 includes a discharge pipe 27 (corresponding to a part of the hot water passage) extending from the storage tank 22 to the cleaning knob 5, and a pump 28 and a thermistor 29 that are installed in this discharge pipe 27 in order from the upstream side. It includes two check valves 30, a flow rate sensor 31, a venturi 32, etc. to which a detergent supply pipe 7a is connected. A detergent supply pipe 7a extending from the detergent tank 7 is provided with an electromagnetic on-off valve 7c.

The control unit 21 includes, for example, a microcomputer equipped with a calculation unit, a storage unit, an input/output unit, and a clock circuit, and controls equipment related to the cleaning operation and the drain plug 4 based on a control program stored in the storage unit. control. During the cleaning operation, the control unit 21 opens the drain valve 4, controls the opening/closing of the electromagnetic valves 25a, 25b, 7c, etc. of the hot water supply pipe 23 and the detergent supply pipe 7a, and drives the pump 28. A cleaning operation history including the start time or end time, cleaning course, number of cleaning operations (number of automatic cleanings), etc. is stored.

The cleaning operation will be explained.
When the operation terminal such as the kitchen remote controller 12 or the cleaning remote controller 13 is operated to start the cleaning operation by the bathtub cleaning device 10, the control unit 21 opens the drain valve 4, and while storing hot water in the storage tank 22, the pump 28 is driven to mix detergent with hot water supplied to the cleaning nozzle 5, and the detergent and hot water are sprayed from the cleaning nozzle 5.

One cleaning process consists of initial rinsing with only hot water (several 10 seconds), then multiple washings and standby operations using hot water with detergent, and final rinsing with only hot water (several 10 seconds). ). The cleaning and standby operation includes a cleaning operation using hot water containing detergent for several tens of seconds, and a standby operation for about 10 seconds following this cleaning operation.

The flow rate of the constant flow valves 26a, 26b is, for example, 5 L/min, respectively, and the discharge rate of the pump 28 is, for example, 6.5 L/min. When the water level in the storage tank 22 becomes low, the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b Both valves are opened to supply hot water at a flow rate of 10 L/min, and when the water level in the storage tank 22 reaches a high level, one of the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a and 25b is closed to supply hot water at a flow rate of 5 L/min. Hot water is supplied.

Next, the overall structure of the cleaning unit 6 will be explained.
As shown in FIG. 2, in the upper part of the inside of the casing 33 of the cleaning unit 6, electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and a constant flow valve 26a, which are respectively installed in the two branch passages 23a, 23b of the hot water supply pipe 23, 26b is attached. The storage tank 22 is arranged on the right side of the upper part of the casing 33, the two electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and the storage tank 22 are arranged side by side, and the flat box-shaped flow path forming case body 34 is connected to the casing 33. It is arranged so as to straddle the upper surface and the upper surface of the storage tank 22. Note that, on the outside of the casing 33, the hot water supply pipe 23 is provided with a filter mounting portion 35 to which the filter 24 is mounted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, inside the flow path forming case body 34, there is formed a flat merging passage 23c which is a merging of two branch passages 23a and 23b and has a large passage area. The merging passage 23c extends to the upper surface of the storage tank 22, and hot water is supplied to the storage tank 22 from a water supply port 36 located near the downstream end of the merging passage 23c. The storage tank 22 is provided with a water level detector 22a and a buffer plate 37.
The buffer plate 37 is for suppressing the water surface from undulating in the storage tank 22 due to the hot water falling from the water supply port 36 into the storage tank 22.

A discharge port 38 is formed in the center of the bottom plate of the storage tank 22 , and a pump 28 is interposed in the upstream portion of the discharge pipe 27 connected to the discharge port 38 . The pump 28 discharges hot water sucked in from the discharge port 38 to the cleaning nozzle 5 via the discharge pipe 27.

Most of the discharge piping 27 is disposed in the lower part of the inside of the casing 33 in the shape of a horizontally long oval, and the discharge piping 27 includes a thermistor 29, two check valves 30, a flow rate sensor 31, and an orifice. 32 is interposed. The orifice 32 is formed in a synthetic resin block 39, and a detergent passage 40 to which the detergent supply pipe 7a is connected is formed in the synthetic resin block 39, and the detergent passage 40 is connected to the orifice 32 by a small diameter passage 40a. Further, the synthetic resin block 39 is equipped with an electromagnetic on-off valve 7c that can open and close the detergent passage 40a. A discharge pipe 27 (corresponding to a part of the hot water passage) extending to the cleaning nozzle 5 is connected to the orifice 32 .

Next, the flow path forming case body 34 will be explained in detail.
As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the flow path forming case body 34 is provided between the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and the storage tank 22, and this flow path forming case body 34 has a passage for hot water inside. 23c (internal flow path) is formed in the shape of a flat box.

Hot water is supplied to the internal passage (merging passage 23c, internal passage) of the flow path forming case body 34 from the branch passages 23a, 23b, and hot water is supplied to the storage tank 22 from one water supply port 36 on the downstream side. The flow path forming case body 34 is a flat flow path forming portion 41 to which the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a and 25b are connected, and has a flow path forming portion 41 having a deceleration function to decelerate hot water, and an upper surface of the storage tank 22. It is integrally formed with a lid forming part 42 that forms a lid part that covers the. The upper surface of the merging passage 23c inside the flow path forming portion 41 is covered with a top plate 41a made of a thin metal plate, and the top plate 41a is fixed with a plurality of screws 41b. This flow path forming case body 34 is fixed to the casing 33 with a plurality of screws 34a.

Constant flow valves 26a and 26b are provided downstream of the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a and 25b in the branch passages 23a and 23b, and two constant flow valves are provided on the lower surface side of the flow path forming part 41 of the flow path forming case body 34. Two valve accommodating parts 43a and 43b are provided in which valves 26a and 26b are mounted, respectively. The valve accommodating parts 43a and 43b are constituted by annular short cylinder parts, and passage holes 43c and 43d (downstream ends of branch passages) are formed in the upper walls of the valve accommodating parts 43a and 43b.

A water inlet 36 is formed in the lid forming part 42 to communicate the merging passage 23c with the storage tank 22. It is formed into a short cylindrical shape. Therefore, since the hot water falling from the water supply port 36 is rectified in a columnar shape, the hot water does not flow down the lower surface of the lid forming part 42, and the detection accuracy of the water level detector 22a does not deteriorate.

The merging passage 23c inside the flow path forming part 41 is a flat passage with a large cross-sectional area compared to the cross-sectional area of the two branch passages 23a and 23b. The hot water flowing from the branch passages 23a and 23b to the merging passage 23c through 26b is decelerated to a low flow velocity within the merging passage 23c. Therefore, the water surface of the hot water in the storage tank 22 is less likely to ripple and the water surface is less likely to sway. Therefore, the detection accuracy of the water level detector 22a does not deteriorate.

A mounting hole 44 into which the water level detector 22a is inserted and mounted is formed in the lid forming portion 42, and a plurality of screw holes 45 into which the buffer plate 37 is fixed are also formed.
A fitting portion 46 is formed on the lower surface of the outer peripheral portion of the lid forming portion 42 and is fitted into the upper end portion of the outer peripheral wall of the storage tank 22 from above.

The buffer plate 37 is for suppressing the shaking of the water surface due to hot water flowing into the storage tank 22 from the water supply port 36, and is made of a thin stainless steel plate. This buffer plate 37 has a vertical plate 37a extending vertically between the water supply port 36 and the water level detector 22a, and a horizontal horizontal plate 37b located below the water supply port 36.

The vertical plate 37a is arranged at a position such that the discharge port 38 is located closer to the water level detector 22a than the vertical plate 37a. The vertical plate 37a has a width that is approximately 3/5 of the longitudinal width of the storage tank 22, and the center of the vertical plate 37a substantially corresponds to the center of the water level detector 22a. An L-shaped portion at the upper end of the vertical plate 37a is fixed to the lower surface of the lid forming part 42 by two screws 37c, and the vertical plate 37a extends vertically downward from the lower surface of the lid forming part 42.

The horizontal plate 37b is placed at approximately the same level as the high water level.
An L-shaped part is formed at the right end of the horizontal plate 37b, and the horizontal plate 37b is inserted into a horizontal slit formed in the vertical plate 37a.The L-shaped part is fixed to the vertical plate 37a with two screws 37d, and The plate 37b extends horizontally to the left from the vertical plate 37a.

The functions and effects of the bathtub cleaning device 10 described above will be explained.
A hot water passage 23 through which hot water is supplied to the storage tank 22 is provided with electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b, and a hot water flow path is formed inside between the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and the storage tank 22. A flow path forming case body 34 formed in the shape of a flat box is also provided.

When hot water is stored in the storage tank 22, the hot water that has passed through the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a and 25b flows through a flat passage (flow path) inside the flat box-shaped flow path forming case body 34 and is supplied to the storage tank 22. be done. The hot water flowing through the merging passage 23c inside the flow path forming case body 34 is decelerated in the merging passage 23c and then filled into the storage tank 22, so water splashing and shaking of the water surface are less likely to occur in the storage tank 22. There is no negative effect on water level detection accuracy.

Constant flow valves 26a, 26b are provided downstream of the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b in the branch passages 23a, 23b, and the flow path forming case body 34 has a valve housing section 43a, in which the constant flow valves 26a, 26b are mounted. 43b is provided. Therefore, the structure for mounting the constant flow valves 26a and 26b becomes simple, and the mounting can be easily performed.

The plurality of electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and the storage tank 22 are arranged side by side, and the flow path forming case body 34 is a flat flow path forming part 41 to which the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b are connected, and slows down the hot water. It is integrally formed with a flow path forming part 41 having a deceleration function and a lid forming part 42 forming a lid part that covers the upper surface of the storage tank 22.

In this way, the flow path forming case body 34 has the functions of connecting the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a and 25b, forming an internal flow path and slowing down the hot water, and forming the lid of the storage tank 22. It becomes a multi-functional member. Since a fitting part 46 that fits into the upper end of the outer peripheral wall of the storage tank 22 is formed on the lower surface of the outer peripheral part of the lid forming part 42, the structure of the lid of the storage tank 22 is simplified.

The storage tank 22 includes a water supply port 36, a discharge port 38, a water level detector 22a, and a buffer plate 37. Detection accuracy does not decrease.

Since the buffer plate 37 has a vertical plate 37a extending vertically between the water supply port 36 and the water level detector 22a, it can effectively suppress hot water falling from the water supply port 36 from scattering toward the water level detector 22a. . Therefore, there is no possibility that the detection accuracy of the water level detector 22a will be deteriorated by scattered water droplets or the like.

Moreover, since the buffer plate 37 has a horizontal horizontal plate 37b located below the water supply port 36, the horizontal plate 37b catches and buffers hot water falling from the water supply port 36, and the water surface due to hot water flowing from the water supply port 36 is It is possible to effectively suppress the shaking.

Since the discharge port 38 is located closer to the water level detector 22a than the vertical plate 37a of the buffer plate 37, the shaking of the water surface near the discharge port 38 is suppressed by the hot water falling from the water supply port 36, so that the pump 28 air trapping can be prevented.
Since the buffer plate 37 is fixed to the flow path forming case body 34 extending over the electromagnetic on-off valves 25a, 25b and the storage tank 22, the fixing structure for fixing the buffer plate 37 becomes simple.

Next, an example in which the above embodiment is partially modified will be described.
(1) Although the bathtub cleaning device 10 of the above embodiment has been described using an example in which cleaning is performed using hot water supplied from the hot water supply device 2, the bathtub cleaning device 10 is configured to perform cleaning using water supplied from a tap water source. It is also possible to do this. In that case, a constant flow valve is required that can provide the desired flow rate even when the water pressure of the water supply is low, such as on a high floor of an apartment building. If only one constant flow valve is installed, the minimum required water pressure will be as high as about 0.15 MPa because a constant flow valve with a large flow rate will be employed.
However, since the present invention employs two constant flow valves 26a and 26b with relatively small flow rates, it is possible to operate at a minimum water pressure significantly lower than about 0.15 MPa.
Incidentally, the above can also be said because the hot water supply pressure of the hot water supply device 2 in the embodiment described above is proportional to the water pressure of the tap water source.

(2) In addition, those skilled in the art can implement various modifications to the above embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and the present invention does not include such modifications. be.

1 Bathtub 2 Hot water supply device 5 Cleaning nozzle 6 Cleaning unit 7 Detergent tank 7c Solenoid on-off valve 10 Bathtub cleaning device 11 Bathroom remote control 13 Cleaning remote control 22 Storage tank (hot water storage section)
22a Water level detector 23 Hot water supply pipe (hot water passage)
23a, 23b Branch passage 23c Merging passage 25a, 25b Electromagnetic on-off valve 26a, 26b, 26c, 26d Constant flow valve 27 Discharge piping (hot water passage)
28 Pump 34 Channel forming case body 36 Water supply port 37 Buffer plate 37a Vertical plate 37b Horizontal plate 41 Channel forming section 42 Lid forming section

Claims (3)

A bathtub cleaning device equipped with a hot water storage part that is provided in the middle of a hot water passage that supplies hot water to a cleaning nozzle and can store hot water supplied from the hot water passage, and a pump that can feed hot water from this hot water storage part to the cleaning nozzle. In the device,
The hot water storage section includes a water supply port through which hot water flows from upstream, a discharge port through which hot water is discharged to be sent to the pump, a water level detection means for detecting the water level of hot water stored inside, and a water supply port through which hot water flows from the water supply port. Equipped with a buffer plate that suppresses the shaking of the water surface due to hot water,
The bathtub cleaning device is characterized in that the buffer plate has a vertical plate extending vertically between the water supply port and the water level detection means, and a horizontal plate located below the water supply port. The bathtub cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the discharge port is located closer to the water level detection means than the vertical plate of the buffer plate. A hot water passage through which hot water is supplied to the hot water storage section is provided with an electromagnetic on-off valve, and a flow path forming case body formed in a flat box shape extends over the electromagnetic on-off valve and the hot water storage section. 3. The bathtub cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the buffer plate is fixed to the flow path forming case body.