JPH028651A - Water flow sensing type starting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a positive operation of equipment even if a small amount of fed hot water is present in a hot water feeder by a method wherein a pulse count corresponding to an amount of water fed from a pulse generating means is converted into a voltage by F/V conversion means and the equipment is operated as the voltage becomes more than a predetermined voltage. CONSTITUTION:When an operation switch is turned on, water from a supplying pipe 31 passes through a water amount controlling valve 34 and a water flow sensor 35, flows through a heat exchanger 32 and a bypass pipe 32a and then flows out of a hot water feeding pipe 31a. In this way, a pulse count corresponding to a water flow is generated from a water flow sensor 35, is inputted to a water flow circuit of a control device 40, becomes a voltage corresponding to the amount of water through F/V conversion circuit. As it becomes more than a voltage corresponding to a predetermined amount of water, an igniting operation of a combustion unit 10 is started. In this way, even in the case that the amount of water passing through the water flow passage is less, it is possible to input the voltage corresponding to the amount of water, resulting in that the equipment can be positively operated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field 1] The present invention relates to a water flow detection type starter device that starts the operation of equipment by detecting water flow passing through a water flow path.

[Prior Art] In hot water equipment such as water heaters, a heating device for heating water controls the amount of heating depending on the amount of water passing through a water pipe. Therefore, the water pipe is provided with a pulse-generating water flow sensor that generates a number of pulses corresponding to the amount of water passing through the water pipe.

In addition, in the hot water supply 2; etc., when the user uses water, water passing through the water pipe is detected and the operation is started.

At this time, to start the operation of the heating device, there is a starter device 100 that utilizes a pulse generated from a water flow sensor provided to control the amount of heating. In this starting device 100,
As shown in FIG. 4, the pulse signal from the water flow sensor input from the terminal 101 is transmitted to the transistors
The output voltage is further smoothed by a resistor 104 and a capacitor 105, and based on the smoothed voltage, the output voltage is
Switching is performed by C comparison 6106, where the reference voltage of comparator 106 is set by adjusting semi-fixed resistor 109 provided in series between resistor 107 and resistor 108.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in water heaters, etc., the amount of hot water required is not necessarily large. Therefore, even when the amount of hot water supplied is small, the heating device does not operate reliably. There is a need to. However, when the amount of hot water supplied is small, the conventional startup method shown in Figure 4 is recommended. ! ! In the i-position 100, the pulse input to the terminal 101 is simply waveform-shaped, so the amount of hot water supplied is particularly small, and if the number of input pulses is small, the charging potential of the capacitor 105 decreases. Therefore, even if the semi-fixed resistor 109 is adjusted, a reliable switching signal cannot be obtained from the comparison 3106, resulting in the problem that the heating device cannot be operated. be.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a water flow detection type starter device that can reliably operate a device even when the amount of hot water supplied is small.

[Hands for Solving the Problems Pi1 The present invention includes a pulse generating means that generates a number of pulses corresponding to the amount of water passing through a water flow path, and an output voltage that generates an output voltage corresponding to the number of pulses generated by the pulse generating means. A technical means is adopted consisting of an F/V conversion means and a switching means that generates an activation signal when the output voltage of the F/V conversion means is higher than a predetermined voltage.

[Function] In the present invention, a pulse generating means generates a number of pulses corresponding to Mercury, and the F/V converting means converts the pulses into a voltage corresponding to the number of pulses. In the switching means, when the output voltage of the F/V conversion means exceeds a predetermined voltage, an activation signal is generated and the device is activated.

[Effects of the Invention] In the present invention, since the pulses generated by the pulse generating means are F/V converted into a voltage according to the number of pulses, the switching means You can also input the voltage according to the amount of water. Therefore, the device can be reliably operated when a predetermined amount of water passes through the water channel.

[Example 1] Next, an example in which the water flow detection type starting device of the present invention is used in a gas water heater will be described based on the drawings.

The gas water heater of this embodiment, which is schematically shown in FIG. 2, has a combustor 1
0, a fuel pipe 20, a water pipe 30, and a control device 40.

The combustor 10 is provided in the water heater case 1 and includes a burner group 11 in which a plurality of burners are arranged in two rows, and a combustion fan 12 that supplies combustion air. Fuel gas is supplied to the burner group 11 from the nozzle 13, and the combustion fan 1
Combustion is carried out by the combustion air supplied by 2,
Combustion gas generated by combustion is exhausted from the exhaust port 2.

On one side near the burner group 11, there is a sparker 1 of the ignition system.
4. A flame rod 15 for flame detection is provided.

The fuel pipe 20 supplies fuel gas to the nozzle 13, and is provided with a main solenoid valve 21, a main solenoid valve 22, and a proportional valve 23 in order from the upstream side, and downstream of the proportional valve 23, each of the burner group 11 The fuel pipes 20 are branched in order to supply fuel gas to each branch, and one of the branched fuel pipes 20
is equipped with a switching valve 24 in order to stop combustion in one of the burner groups 11 arranged in two rows.

The proportional valve 23 adjusts the supply pressure of the fuel gas supplied from the nozzle 13 to the burner L'\11 in proportion to the applied current, thereby adjusting the supply of fuel gas)l.

The water pipe 30 includes a supply pipe 31 and a hot water supply pipe 31a connected to a water supply source and a hot water supply port (not shown), respectively, and a heat exchanger 32 and a bypass pipe 3 provided to communicate these.
It consists of 2a. Heat exchanger 32 and bypass pipe 32a
A bypass valve 33 is provided at the merging section on the downstream side. A portion of the water supplied from the supply pipe 31 is transferred to the heat exchanger 3
2, the remaining portion is led to the hot water supply pipe 31a via the bypass pipe 32a, and the proportion of the water heated by the heat exchanger 32 and the water directly led through the bypass pipe 32a is the same as that of the bypass valve. 33.

On the other hand, a water flow control valve 34, a water flow sensor 35, and an inlet water temperature thermistor 36 are installed in the supply pipe 31 from the upstream side.
A is provided with a hot water temperature thermistor 38, respectively.

The control device V1.40 is the control device 4 as shown in FIG.
A microcomputer 42 that is the center of the 0 and has an interface with an input/output circuit 50, a safety circuit 43 for ensuring safety, a solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44, a power supply section 45 that supplies power to all of these, and an input/output circuit 50. circuit 5
0 circuits, a controller 46 for controlling the operation of the gas water heater, and a microcomputer 42 that controls the operation mode of the factory depending on the type of gas used, presence or absence of a remote control, hot water supply capacity, exhaust equipment, etc. Mode setting circuit 4 for pre-setting when shipping from or installing a gas water heater
It has 7.

The safety circuit 43 sends a power stop signal to the microcomputer from the microcomputer 42, the flame detection circuit 58, and the water flow circuit 59 to stop the power supply to the microcomputer 42 when combustion stop (No. 5 is input), respectively. power supply 4
Output to 5a.

The solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44 is a relay circuit for energizing the original solenoid valve 21, the main solenoid valve 22, and the switching valve 24, respectively, in response to a control signal from the microcomputer 42.

When a plug (not shown) is inserted into an outlet, the power supply section 45 converts the electric power for operating each circuit of the control device 40 into the voltage necessary for each circuit and constantly supplies it.
In this embodiment, the microcomputer power supply 45,i that supplies power to the microcomputer 42 has a switching function that stops the power supply to the microcomputer 42 in response to a combustion stop signal from the safety circuit 43, and stops the power supply. By doing so, the operation of the microcomputer 42 is stopped. In addition, the relay circuit power supply 45b that supplies power to the solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44 has a switching function that starts supplying power to the solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44 in response to water flow signals from the five water flow circuits. When the water flows into the pipe 31, each electromagnetic valve is enabled to be energized, and when the water stops flowing, the energization to each electromagnetic valve is stopped and the fuel supply is stopped.

The input/output circuit 50 is a circuit for exchanging signals with each of the above-mentioned parts provided in the gas water heater. The input/output circuit 50 includes a sparker circuit 51 that generates a high voltage to cause a spark discharge to the sparker 14 and detects the spark discharge in the sparker 14, and a sparker circuit 51 that detects the spark discharge in the sparker 14, and determines the temperature from the resistance value of each thermistor arranged in the water tube 30. A water temperature detection circuit 53 for obtaining a signal, a geared motor drive circuit 54 that drives the bypass valve 33 and the water flow control valve 34 based on a signal from a not-shown potentiometer, and a combustion fan 12 that is driven based on a control signal from the microcomputer 42. In addition, a fan circuit 55 outputs a pulse signal for detecting the rotation speed of the combustion fan 12, a communication circuit 57 exchanges signals with the controller 46, and a water flow sensor 35 that generates a signal according to the amount of water passing through the woodwind 30. When the amount of water passing through the water pipe 30 reaches a certain amount J, the relay circuit power supply 45 of the power supply unit 45 transmits the pulse signal from the power supply unit 45 to the microcomputer 42.
t) and five water flow circuits that transmit to the safety circuit 43, and a proportional valve circuit 60 that energizes the proportional valve 23 that regulates the fuel gas.

Next, the water flow circuit 59 will be explained based on FIG.

The terminals 61, 62, and 63 are all connected to the water flow sensor 35, and the terminal 61 is connected to the voltage V supplied from the power supply section 45.
l) (1), terminal 62 is connected to the ground circuit;
Terminal 63 receives pulses generated by water flow sensor 35 .

The cathode of a Zener diode 64 is connected to the terminal T-63, and the pulses passing through the Zener diode 64 above a certain voltage are waveform-shaped by NPN transistors 65 and 66.

The pulse whose waveform has been shaped by the transistor 66 is sent to the microcomputer 42 from the terminal -J' 68.

The output of transistor 66 is connected to F through capacitor 69.
/V conversion circuit 70.

The F/V conversion circuit 70 converts input pulses into a DC voltage using an F/■ conversion element 71, and outputs a DC voltage corresponding to the number of input pulses.

A capacitor 73 is connected between the output part 70a of the F/V conversion circuit 70 and the ground electrode 72, and the F/V conversion circuit 70
The output voltage of is stabilized by capacitor 73.

Further, the output section 70a of the F/V conversion circuit 70 has a ratio of 11
The positive input terminal P74a of 2374 is connected.

On the other hand, the negative input terminal 7-74b of the comparator 74 receives the power supply voltage ■. . A reference voltage obtained by dividing the voltage by resistors 75 and 76 is input.

The comparator 74 has an F/
When the output voltage of the V conversion circuit 70 becomes higher than the reference voltage input to the negative input terminal 74b, a high level signal is output. Note that the comparator 74 has a steresis characteristic to ensure stability of operation as a starter, and the output is inverted to low level only when the inversion voltage is set lower than the reference voltage. That's when it became.

An output terminal 74c of the comparator 74 is connected to a terminal 77. The terminal T-77 is connected to the safety circuit 43 and the relay circuit power source 45t), and sends out a starting signal, respectively.

The gas water heater of this embodiment, which has the following two configurations, operates as follows.

When the user turns on the operation switch using the controller 46, sets the hot water temperature, and opens a faucet (not shown), water supplied through the supply pipe 31 passes through the water flow control valve 34 and the water flow sensor 35. Then, the water flows into the heat exchanger 32 and the bypass pipe 32a, the amount of each outflow is adjusted by the bypass valve 33, and flows out from the hot water supply port (not shown) via the hot water supply pipe 31a.

When water passes through the supply pipe 31, the water flow sensor 35 generates a number of pulses corresponding to the amount of water passing through, and the terminal 63
The water is inputted to the water flow circuit 59 from

The input pulse passes through the Zener diode 64 and is waveform-shaped by transistors 65 and 66.

The waveform-shaped pulse is sent from the terminal 68 to the microcomputer 42, differentiated by the capacitor 69, and subjected to F/V conversion r5J&! 870.

The F/V conversion circuit 70 converts the pulses into voltages according to the number of input pulses. Therefore, the F/V conversion circuit 7
From 0, a voltage corresponding to the number of water detected by the water flow sensor 35 is output.

The ratio *2a 74 indicates that when the output voltage of the F/V conversion circuit 70, which indicates that the amount of water flowing into the supply pipe 31 has become a predetermined amount or more, is input to the positive input terminal 74a, it is output as a starting signal. A high level signal is output and sent from terminal 77 to relay circuit power supply 45b and safety device B43.

As a result, the relay circuit power supply 45b supplies power to the solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44, and the solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 4
4 becomes in a state in which each electromagnetic valve can be driven in response to a control signal from the microcomputer 42.

On the other hand, in the safety circuit 43, the microcomputer power supply 45a is operated for a certain period of time after the power supply unit 45 starts supplying power, regardless of the input signal. Therefore, power is supplied to the microcomputer 42, and the microcomputer 42 starts the ignition operation of the combustor 10 in a predetermined sequence.

Due to the ignition operation, a spark discharge is generated in the sparker 14, and when the spark discharge in the sparker 14 is detected, the former solenoid valve 21
The main solenoid valve 22 is energized, and the fuel gas is ejected from the nozzle 13, mixed with combustion air, supplied to the burner group 11, and ignited by the sparker 14.

At this time, the combustion fan 12 and the proportional valve 23 are subjected to slow ignition control.

When the ignition occurs within a certain period of time and is detected by the flame rod 15, the microcomputer 42 outputs each detection signal from the water temperature detection circuit 53 and the water flow circuit 59).
The required combustion amount is calculated based on the setting signal of the controller 46, and the combustion fan 12 is
, the proportional valve 23, the switching valve 24, the bypass valve 33, and the water flow control valve 34 are controlled.

When the user turns off the faucet, the pulses generated from the water flow sensor 35 stop, and the output voltage of the F/V conversion circuit 70 also decreases accordingly.

When the charge in the capacitor 73 is discharged and its potential decreases, the output of the comparator 74 is inverted to a low level. Then,
The relay circuit power supply 45b is the solenoid valve energizing relay circuit 44
Microcomputer 4
Irrespective of the two control signals, the energization to each electromagnetic valve is stopped and the valve is placed in an idle state. Therefore, fuel supply is stopped and combustion is reliably stopped.

As described above, in the water flow detection type starting device of the present invention, F/
Since a V conversion circuit is provided, starting and stopping can be controlled by a small amount of water passing through the water pipe.

In this embodiment, the water flow detection is not used to start the electromagnetic valve energizing relay circuit, but it may be used to start the entire control device or the microcomputer.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a circuit diagram showing the water flow circuit of a gas water heater using the present invention, Fig. 2 is a configuration diagram showing an outline of the gas water heater of this embodiment, and Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram showing the water flow circuit of a gas water heater of this embodiment. A block diagram showing the control device, and FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a conventional water flow circuit. In the figure, 35... water flow sensor (pulse generating means), 70
...F/V conversion circuit (F/V conversion means), 74... Comparator (switching means).

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1) Pulse generating means for generating a number of pulses corresponding to the amount of water passing through a water flow path, and F/V converting means for generating an output voltage according to the number of pulses generated by the pulse generating means. A water flow detection type starting device comprising: and switching means that generates an activation signal when the output voltage of the F/V conversion means is equal to or higher than a predetermined voltage.