JPH03106307A - Hairdressing apparatus with steam generator - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To supply a suitable amount of water to a water absorbing body by employing a check valve for water supply control separately from a check valve for regulating internal pressure. CONSTITUTION:A second check valve 31 for water supply control closes a water supply passage between a water supply tank 18 and a water conductor 32 when a hair dressing apparatus is in a vertical attitude with the water supply tank 18 upward to stop water supply to a water absorbing body 20. When the apparatus is in a horizontal attitude, the passage is opened with the own weight of the check valve 31 to allow water supply to the water absorbing body 20. Therefore, an appropriate amount of water may be supplied without supplying excess amount of water while producing sufficient amount of steam, if the first check valve 30 is set to a valve opening pressure according to a suitable amount of water consumed when the apparatus is used.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a hair styling tool equipped with a steam generator, and is an improved water supply structure of a water tank in the steam generator.

[Conventional technology]

Among this type of hair styling equipment, there is one in which water is supplied from a water supply tank through a water absorbing material such as felt, and the water impregnated into the felt is heated with a heater to generate steam (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-20809). Bulletin〉.Inside the water tank,
A check valve is provided to adjust the internal pressure, and when the tank internal pressure becomes negative pressure below a certain value due to water being sucked out, the check valve opens and allows outside air to flow in, eliminating the negative pressure in the tank. . This check valve is a type of reed valve that maintains a closed state by its own elasticity, and is made of a mushroom-shaped rubber item.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

The check valve does not open unless the tank internal pressure reaches a predetermined negative pressure value. Therefore, the amount of water sucked out by the water absorbing body tends to gradually decrease until the check valve opens, and accordingly, the amount of steam generated also gradually decreases, although there is a slight time lag.

In particular, when the opening pressure of the check valve is high, this steam shortage becomes noticeable.

By reducing the opening pressure of the check valve, water can be sucked out smoothly by the water absorbing body.

However, in this case, when the heater is in use and generating heat, the entire amount of water sucked out can be steamed, but if the hair styling tool is not used and the whole body is held in a position with the water tank facing upward. Moreover, there is a risk that unsteamed water drips from the water absorber, flooding the inside of the steam generator, which poses a problem, especially in maintaining electrical insulation around the heater.

For these reasons, the opening pressure of the check valve is often set to prevent excessive water suction while allowing for a slight lack of steam. It was.

In addition to the above, variations in the opening pressure of the check valves have also been a problem in properly supplying water. In other words, even when the water absorbing body is sucking out the maximum amount of its capacity, the pressure fluctuation value inside the tank will only be about 30 to 40 mmll■0. Even if it is set, the variation in valve pressure when the valve is opened cannot be made smaller than the pressure fluctuation value.

In particular, in the case of check valves made of rubber-shaped parts, the valve closing pressure tends to vary depending on the vulcanization state of the rubber, making it difficult to obtain an appropriate valve pressure.

As described above, in the conventional water supply structure, the water supply condition was largely influenced by the valve characteristics of the check valve for adjusting the internal pressure, and there was a dissatisfaction in that appropriate water supply could not be performed.

This invention has been proposed in view of the above, and its purpose is to provide reliable and appropriate water supply without being influenced by the valve characteristics of the check valve by improving the water supply structure of the water supply tank. An object of the present invention is to obtain a hair styling tool equipped with a steam generating device that can perform hair styling.

Another object of the invention is to eliminate excessive water supply and wasteful water consumption in steam generators.

[Means to solve the problem]

In this invention, a check valve for water supply control is provided in addition to the check valve for internal pressure adjustment, and this check valve can optimize the water supply to the water absorbing body.

Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a water chamber 29 in the water tank 18 and a water inlet 27 of the water tank 18
A second check valve 31 for water supply control that opens and closes the water supply route by moving in the direction of gravity is provided in the water supply route between the water conductor 32 attached to In the vertical position, the second check valve 31 is configured to switch to the closed position in which water supply is stopped.

It is preferable that a second water chamber 54 for storing a certain amount of water is defined in the water supply path between the second check valve 31 and the water guide body 32.

[Effect]

The second check valve 31 for water supply control closes the water supply path between the water supply tank 18 and the water conductor 32 when the hair styling tool is in a vertical position with the water supply tank 18 facing upward, and prevents water from flowing to the water absorption body 20. Stop supply. In addition, when the hair styling tool is held in a sideways position, its own weight causes it to switch to the open position and the water absorbent body 2
Allow water supply to. Therefore, if the opening pressure of the first check valve 30 is set according to the appropriate amount of water consumption during use,
It is possible to prevent excessive water supply and provide appropriate water supply while producing a sufficient amount of steam.

〔Example〕

3 to 7 show an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a hair curler.

In FIG. 3, the hair curler consists of an air blower unit 1 which also serves as a grip, and a hair styling unit 11 which is detachably attached to the air outlet 2 of the air blower unit 1. The air blower unit 1 houses a fan 5 driven by a motor 4, a heater 6 for heating the air, etc. inside a cylindrical main body case 3, and the air is taken in from the suction port 7. The air is pressurized and blown out from the air outlet D2. A main switch 8 that controls the operating states of the motor 4 and the heater 6, and a switching switch 9 that controls energization to a steam generator 16, which will be described later, are provided on the outer surface of the main body case 3.

The hair styling unit 11 has a brush frame 13 fixed inside a hollow blow-off case 12, and a plurality of rows of bristles 14 fixed to the outer surface of the frame 13, so as to be configured in the shape of a hair brush. A cylindrical holder l5 is integrally formed on the inner surface of the brush frame 13, and a steam generator l5 is installed in this holder 15.
6 is accommodated.

The steam generator 16 includes a water tank 18 placed at the tip of the blowout case 12 and a heater 19 for steam generation.
, a water absorbing body 20 that supplies water in the water tank 18 to the heater 19, and the like. Heater 19 is in case 21
It has a shield structure with the heater element sealed inside. The water absorbent body 20 is made by compressing and solidifying highly heat-resistant fibers into a band shape, and the entire body is folded into a U-shape and placed in a holder 5, which is placed in close contact with the outer surface of the case 21. .

As shown in FIG. 4, there is a heater 1 on the bottom surface of the holder 15.
A group of steam holes 22 are opened in a row along the longitudinal direction of the steam hole 9, and the outer surface of the steam holes 22 is closed with a band-shaped diffusion felt 23. Furthermore, a group of air supply ports 24 are opened in a row at both ends of the lower surface of the brush frame 13 to blow out hot or cold air supplied from the air blower unit 1.

In FIG. 5, the water tank 18 includes a flask-shaped tank body 26, a water filler tube 27 that is fitted and fixed to the lower end of the tank body 26, and a water filler port 27a at the lower end of the water filler tube 27 that is removably fitted inside the tank body 26. Water tap 28 and water tank 18
First and second check valves 30 provided in the water chamber 29 inside
- 31, etc., and the whole is detachably attached to the holder I5.

Water is supplied to the water absorbing body 20 through a water reservoir in the water chamber 29 and a water conductor 32 provided on the stopper body 28 . The water guide body 32 is made of the same material as the water absorbent body 20, and is attached in an inverted T-shape so as to penetrate the plug body 28 from the inside to the outside. On the outer periphery of the stopper body 28, a seal ring 33 for keeping the water injector 27 watertight and a seal ring 34 with a lip for keeping the holder 15 watertight are provided. Also, both seal rings 3
An engagement ring 35 that maintains the attached state of the plug body 28 is projected between 3 and 34.

As shown in FIG. 7, a mounting opening 36 is formed by cutting out a portion of the engagement ring 35 in the circumferential direction. Furthermore, an engagement piece 37 is provided to protrude from the opening edge of the water injection tube 27 in correspondence with the mounting port 36 . By aligning the circumferential positions of the mounting port 36 and the engagement piece 37 and inserting the stopper 28 into the water filler tube 27, twisting the stopper 28 to the left or right, the engagement ring 35 will be connected to the engagement piece 37. When engaged, movement of the stopper 28 in the removal direction is prevented. In this regard, in the conventional hair styling tool, the plug body 28 is maintained in the attached state only by the elastic deformation force of the seal ring 33, and there is a risk that the plug body 28 may fall off when the water tank 18 is attached or removed.

In FIG. 5, a first check valve 30 is provided for adjusting the internal pressure of the water chamber 29. As shown in FIG. Specifically, the tank body 2G
The mushroom-shaped first check is made by recessing the top wall inward, forming a valve seat 39 on its inner surface, and partitioning a water chamber 29 from a vent 40 passed through the valve seat 39. The valve 30 is attached to the valve seat wall. The outer surface of the vent 40 is covered with a protective cassop 41
This cassop 41 is also provided with ventilation holes 42. The first check valve 30 has an umbrella-shaped valve body 4
3 and a central mounting shaft 44 are integrally formed, and a membrane-like seal wall 45 on the periphery of the valve body 43 comes into contact with and separates from the valve seat 39 to change the valve open state and closed state. The state changes.

The second check valve 31 is provided in the water supply path between the water chamber 29 and the water guide body 32, and controls the water supply to the water guide body 32 according to the usage posture of the hair curler. The second check valve 3■ consists of a valve receiver 47 which is sandwiched and fixed between the tank body 26 and the water filler tube 27, and a ball valve 48 provided on the side of the water chamber 29. The roller moves 9 10 in the direction of gravity to switch between the valve open state and the valve closed state.

The valve receiver cylinder 47 is made of chloroprene rubber having a rubber hardness of 50H, and has a tapered valve seat 50 integrally formed at the upper end of the cylinder wall 49. The pole valve 48 is formed into a spherical shape by coating the outer surface of a steel ball made of stainless steel or general steel with silicone rubber, neoprene rubber, etc. When the valve is closed, a part of the spherical surface It is circumscribed in a state where it falls into the seat 50, and blocks the passage of water between the water chamber 29 and the water conducting body 32. The diameter of the ball valve is 10 mm, and the weight is 4.5 g.
And so.

In order to more reliably shut off the water supply path when the valve is closed, the opening end surface 51 on the water chamber side of the water injection tube 27 is inclined inwardly into a tapered shape, and between the opening end surface 51 and the valve seat 50,
This forms a gap E that allows elastic deformation of the valve seat 50 (6th
See figure. When the valve is closed, the valve seat 50 is elastically deformed by this gap E to receive and support the ball valve 48. In other words, the valve seat 50 is in close contact with the ball valve 48 by the weight of the ball valve 48 as well as the deformation reaction force at the time of elastic deformation, thereby ensuring reliable water flow cutoff.

A cross-shaped arch-shaped cage 53 is provided to surround the communication port 52 of the tank body 26 adjacent to the valve seat 50. This cage 53 is connected to the ball valve 4 when the valve is opened.
The ball valve 48 is provided to prevent wasteful movement of the ball valve 8 and to quickly and reliably switch to the closed state. It also helps prevent. In terms of preventing collision noise, it is also advantageous that the surface of the pawl valve 48 is coated with a rubber layer. The maximum movement amount M of the ball valve 48 within the gauge 53 should be as small as possible, but it was set to 6 m to ensure smooth supply and drainage to the tank body 26 (see FIG. 6).

The second check valve 31 switches to the closed state shown in FIG. 5 when the hair blower is held in the vertical position, and switches to the open state shown in FIG. 6 when the hair blower is held in the horizontal position.

In actual use, the hair blower may be temporarily held in a vertical position during use. Even in such cases, water will continue to be supplied. A second water chamber 54 is provided between the ball valve 48 and the water guide body 32 when the valve is closed. The second water chamber 54 consists of an internal space surrounded by the water injection tube 27 and the stopper 28, and the water held there prevents the water supply from being stopped at the same time as the valve is closed.

If the internal volume of the second water chamber 54 exceeds a certain value, there is a risk of excessive water supply even if the second check valve 31 is in the closed state. In other words, a problem arises in that water is supplied in excess of the limit amount of water that can be impregnated into the water supply body 20. Therefore, the internal volume of the second water chamber 54 is determined to be a size that balances the water absorption force due to capillary action and the negative pressure inside the second water chamber 54 when the water absorbent body 20 is impregnated with water of a critical amount. Set it so that it is also smaller. Naturally, the volume of the second water chamber 54 is set smaller than the volume of the water chamber 29, which means that the ball valve 4
8 is useful for facilitating separation from the valve seat 50 when the valve is switched to the open state.

As described above, if the second check valve 31 for water supply control is provided in addition to the first check valve 30 for internal pressure adjustment, even if the opening pressure of the first check valve 300 is set to a small value, Excessive supply of water in the water chamber 29 can be prevented, and while generating a sufficient amount of steam as a whole, poor insulation within the steam generator 16 due to excessive water supply when not in use can be eliminated. Moreover, since excessive water supply to the water absorbent body 20 can be prevented and wasteful water consumption can be prevented, even when the hair blower is used for a long time, it is possible to avoid interruptions in work due to running out of water.

[Another example]

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the second check valve. In this case,
The communication port 52 of the tank body 26 is formed by a cylindrical wall protruding inwardly from the water chamber 29, the opening edge is inclined to form a valve port 56, and a circular valve plate 55 is swung around the periphery of the valve port 56. The second check valve 31 was constructed by supporting the valve so as to be openable and closable. A hinge 57 is generally used as a member that supports the valve plate 55 so that it can swing open and close, but if a universal shaft is used, the valve closing operation of the valve plate 55 can be performed more smoothly in all directions. 14 I can.

The second check valve 31 may be provided anywhere as long as it is a water supply path between the water chamber 29 and the water guide body 32. For example, in the embodiment described above, the cage 53 is integrally formed with the tank body 26, but it may be made separately.In particular, the water filler tube 27 is made detachable from the tank body 26, and the upper end of this water filler tube 27 has a A second check valve 31 can be provided on the water injection tube 27 side by providing a cage 53 and a valve receiver 47 and placing a pole valve 48 therein, and the water injection tube 27 can be removed from the tank body 26 when water is supplied. At the same time, the opening and closing of the second check valve 31 can also be checked. Of course, it is also possible to provide the second check valve 31 on the plug body 28.

The cage 53 can also be omitted as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

There is often a slight time lag between when the second check valve 31 switches to the open state and until the water absorbing action of the water absorbing body 20 stops; in such cases, the second water chamber 54 can be omitted. You can also do that.

In addition to the above, the present invention can also be applied to other hair styling instruments, such as one in which the hair styling unit 11 is configured as a roll brush, and one in which the hair styling unit 11 and the air blower unit 1 are configured to be non-removable. In short, the shape and structure of the hairdressing device does not matter as long as it is equipped with a steam generator.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, in this invention, the water supply tank 18 is provided with the second check valve 31 for water supply control, and when the hair styling tool is held in a horizontal position, the second check valve 31 is opened and the hair styling tool is held vertically. In the state where the water absorbing body 20 is held in the facing position, the second check valve 31 is switched to a closed state, and water supply to the water absorbing body 20 can be stopped. In other words, in a vertical position with the water tank l8 facing upwards, where excessive water supply is a problem,
The water supply route passing through the water conductor 32 was cut off, and the water supply to the water absorbing body 20 was forcibly stopped. Therefore, if the opening pressure of the first check valve 30 is set so that water can be supplied in accordance with the amount of water consumed during use, an adequate amount of steam can be generated while excess water is allowed to flow into the water absorbent body 20. This makes it possible to always reliably supply water without being influenced by the valve characteristics of the first check valve 31.

As a result, it is possible to eliminate electrical insulation defects within the steam generator due to excessive water supply, and furthermore, to eliminate wasteful water consumption and increase the continuous usage time of the hair styling tool.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are principle explanatory diagrams showing an outline of the present invention, respectively. FIG. 1 shows the closed state of the second check valve, and FIG. 2 shows the open state of the second check valve. It shows. 3 to 7 show an embodiment of the hair styling tool according to the present invention, FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway front view of the hair conditioner, FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 3, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the water supply tank, FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing the second check valve when the valve is open, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the stopper separated. FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a second check valve showing another embodiment of the invention. 1...Blower unit 1-Soto, 11...Hairdressing unit 1, 16...Steam generator, 18...Water tank, 19... Heater, 20...Water absorber, 27a...Water inlet, 29...Water chamber, 30...First check valve, 31...Second check valve, 32...Water conductor, 48...Ball valve, 50...Valve seat, 54...Second water chamber. Inventor Tatsuo Shigematsu 17 18

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A water tank (18) provided at one end of the hair styling tool;
Heater for steam generation (19) and water tank (18)
) is equipped with a steam generator (16) including a water absorbing body (20) that supplies the water in an impregnated state to the heater (19), and a first check valve for adjusting the internal pressure is installed inside the water supply tank (18). (30), the water supply between the water chamber (29) in the water supply tank (18) and the water conductor (32) attached to the water inlet (27a) of the water supply tank (18) A second check valve (31) for water supply control that moves in the direction of gravity to open and close the water supply path is provided in the path, and when the hair styling tool is in a vertical position with the water tank (18) facing upward, the second check valve (31) A hairdressing tool equipped with a steam generator configured such that a check valve (31) switches to a closed position in which water supply is stopped. 2. A hair styling tool equipped with a steam generator according to claim 1, wherein a second water chamber (54) is defined in the water supply path between the second check valve (31) and the water conductor (32).