JPH0131105B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] The present invention relates to a bath water heater, specifically, a bath that automates a series of operations in which a predetermined amount of hot water or water is dropped into a bathtub in the first operation, and then heated to a set temperature with a bathwater circulation heater. The present invention aims to provide an inexpensive water level setting method that is not affected by installation conditions or usage conditions in water heaters or other devices that have a process of dropping bath water to at least a constant water level.

Conventionally, in this type of water heater, there is one in which the amount of hot water in the bathtub is set by detecting the water level in the bathtub with a water level detector provided in the device and stopping the water pouring, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 58-56065. In this case, there is a difference in the head pressure of the bathtub water depending on whether the bathroom is on the first floor or the second floor, so there is an inconvenience that the set pressure of the water level detector must be changed depending on the site. In addition, installing a water level detector near the bathtub will eliminate this inconvenience, but if the bathroom is on the second floor, installation work will be required, and the water level detector will be placed between the equipment installed on the first floor. Signal lines must be wired, making installation difficult.

On the other hand, in the case of a device such as the one disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 58-92750, in which a flow rate sensor is installed to drop the set flow rate, the user has to empirically set the amount of additional hot water each time depending on the amount of hot water remaining in the bathtub. This requires skill and is extremely inconvenient to use.

The present invention overcomes these conventional drawbacks, is not affected by the location of the bathroom, is therefore particularly useful for second-floor bathrooms, and is particularly useful for installing water level detectors near bathrooms and between fixtures and bathrooms. To provide a water level setting method at low cost that eliminates the need for wiring work and can always obtain a constant amount of hot water regardless of the amount of remaining hot water.

This will be explained below based on the illustrated embodiment. Reference numeral 1 denotes a bathtub with a water heater, and an instantaneous water heater 2 and a hot water circulating heater 3 are arranged in parallel inside the bathtub. The instantaneous water heater 2 consists of a hot water supply heat exchanger 4, a burner 5 for heating it, an inlet pipe 6 connected to the city water supply, a hot water outlet pipe 7, etc. The hot water outlet pipe 7 is equipped with an outlet hot water temperature detection thermistor 10. There is. On the other hand, hot water circulation heater 3
The circulation heat exchanger 12, the burner 13, the bath water inlet pipe 14, the bath water return pipe 15, the self-priming pump 16 arranged in the return pipe 15, the flow rate switch 17 arranged on the upstream side, and the circulating hot water A temperature detection thermistor 18 and the like are provided. The ends of the outgoing pipe 14 and the return pipe 15 are opened at the side wall of a bathtub 19 in the bathroom. 20 is a bath hot water supply pipe connecting the hot water outlet pipe 7 on the downstream side of the hot water temperature detection thermistor 10 and the pump outlet side of the return pipe 15;
From the hot water outlet pipe 7 side, it has a flow rate sensor 21, a solenoid valve 22 for bath water supply, a vacuum break valve 23 for preventing backflow of sewage, and a check valve 24. 26 is a gas electromagnetic valve provided in a gas path to the burner 13, and 27 is an exhaust fan for discharging waste gas from both heaters 2 and 3 to the outside. Although the bathtub 1 with water heater having such a configuration is installed on the first floor, the bathtub 19 may be installed on the second floor as shown by the chain line instead of being installed on the first floor as shown by the solid line in the figure. In that case, the vacuum breaker valve 23 is 2
Stand it up in a position above the water level of the floor bathtub. 2
Reference numeral 8 denotes a remote control provided near the bathtub 19, which includes a power switch 29, a water temperature adjustment knob 30 for hot water supply, a bath reheating switch 31, a bath automatic switch 32, a bath temperature setting knob 33, a hot water amount setting knob 34, and the like. 35 is a controller that centrally controls various functions of the bathtub with water heater 1, and has a built-in microcomputer.

Next, the process of setting the drop amount according to the present invention in such a configuration will be explained according to the flowchart shown in FIG. When the automatic bath switch 32 is turned on, the pump 16 is driven, and the circulating water temperature detection thermistor 18 detects the initial water temperature (T1).
If the flow rate switch 17 does not operate at this time, that is, if there is not enough hot water in the bathtub 19 to circulate, the pump 16 is driven again after a certain amount of hot water is dropped from the water heater 2 side. . If the flow rate switch 17 is turned on, the water temperature (T1)
is measured and stored in the memory within the controller 35. Next, a certain amount (Q3) of hot water at a certain temperature (T3) is dropped from the water heater 2 by opening the electromagnetic valve 22 and measuring it with the flow sensor 21. The hot water supply temperature (T3) at this time is measured by the outlet hot water temperature detection thermistor 10. Then, the pump 16 is driven again, the temperature of the bath water (T2) is detected by the circulating water temperature detection thermistor 18, and this is stored in memory. From these measurements,
The amount of hot water (Q2) currently in the bathtub 19 and the circulation path is calculated using the following equation.

Q2 = (T ₃ - T ₁ ) x Q ₃ / (T ₂ - T ₁ ) The current amount of hot water (Q2) obtained in this way is set in advance with the hot water amount setting knob 34 as the hot water amount (Q1) (this is ultimately All you have to do is compare the amount of hot water you want to store in the bathtub (for example, 180) and add the amount of hot water that is insufficient (Q2 - Q1) while measuring it with the flow rate sensor 21.

The present invention has such a configuration, and in order to automatically boil the bath, turn on the power switch 29 using the remote control 28.
At the same time, the automatic switch 32 can be pressed after setting the desired temperature and amount of hot water in advance using the bath temperature setting knob 33 and hot water volume setting knob 34. As a result, the operation for calculating the required water replenishment amount described above is performed, and then the next operation is performed. In other words, the solenoid valve 22 opens, water flows, the water heater 2 operates, and the burner 5
is ignited, and hot water at a preset appropriate temperature (for example, 38° C.) flows from the bath water supply pipe 20 to the return pipe 15.
At this time, the flow sensor 21 starts measuring the flow rate of replenishing water, and the hot water is sent out both in the direction of the pump 16 of the return pipe 15 and in the direction of the heat exchanger 12, and gradually accumulates in the bathtub 19. and flow rate sensor 21
When the water heater measures the amount of hot water calculated in advance, the electromagnetic valve 22 closes and the operation of the water heater 2 stops, and then the pump 16 starts rotating, creating a forced flow in the circulation path, which is then switched to the flow rate switch. 17 is detected, the burner 13 is ignited and the circulating hot water is passed through the thermistor 1.
8 will boil the water until it detects the preset water temperature and then stop. During this heating, the bath water is
Since the water is ejected vigorously into the water, there is no difference in temperature between the top and bottom, and the water boils evenly.

When the bath water has cooled down and it is necessary to reheat it, turn on the reheat switch 31, the heat exchanger 12 will heat the water while it is being forced to circulate through the pump 16, and the temperature will be increased by detecting the set temperature of the thermistor 18. stops.

To supply hot water to a kitchen or the like, it is sufficient to open the hot water supply door, and the flow rate sensor 8 starts detecting the water flow, after which hot water is supplied, which is the same as in the case of bath hot water supply.

As described above, according to the present invention, hot water can always be reliably poured to the set water level regardless of the amount of hot water remaining in the bathtub. Additionally, since it uses a pump to reheat remotely, it has the advantage of being compatible with bathrooms on the second floor, regardless of the installation relationship between the bathroom and appliances. Furthermore, calculating the remaining amount of hot water uses a part of the hot water supply operation from the hot water supply circuit (that is, adding a certain amount of hot water at a constant temperature), so special parts that are used only for calculating the remaining amount of hot water are required. Instead, it is cost-effective.

In summary, the present invention provides a bath water heater equipped with a water heater that pours a predetermined amount of hot water arbitrarily set by the user, and a hot water circulation heater that reheats the hot water that has been dropped into the bathtub. When pouring, a certain amount of hot water at a certain temperature from a water heater is added to a certain amount of hot water stored in the bathtub.
The amount of hot water at that point is calculated from the amount of change in hot water temperature before and after pouring, and this calculated amount of hot water is compared with the predetermined amount set in advance, and an amount of hot water corresponding to the difference between the two is supplied from the water heater. Since the final desired amount is obtained by replenishing the water, it is extremely superior in that the set amount of water can always be obtained reliably, regardless of the equipment installation conditions at the site or usage conditions such as the presence or absence of remaining hot water. effect can be achieved. Moreover, since no special parts are required to obtain this effect, it also has an advantageous effect in terms of cost.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a bath water supply device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention. 2...Water heater, 3...Bath water circulation heater, 19...
...bathtub.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a bath water heater equipped with a water heater that pours a predetermined amount of hot water arbitrarily set by the user, and a bath water circulation heater that reheats the hot water that has been poured in, when pouring the predetermined amount of hot water into the bathtub, A certain amount of hot water at a certain temperature is added from a water heater to a certain amount of hot water stored in the bathtub, and the amount of hot water at that point is calculated from the amount of change in hot water temperature before and after pouring the hot water. A method for setting a water level in a bath hot water supply device, characterized in that the amount of hot water is compared with the predetermined amount and the amount of hot water corresponding to the difference between the two is replenished from the water heater.