JPH03126108A - Multifunctional electronic faucet - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily obtain a required flow rate with one switch operation in any case by providing a flow rate selecting switch and a return switch and operating these switches. CONSTITUTION:When a flow rate selecting switch 1 of an operation part 5 is operated, a display element 3 corresponding to each stage of the flow rate selecting switch 1 is, for example, lit and a sound emitting element 4 emits a short sound to report that the switch 1 is operated. A control part 11 outputs a command signal to an actuator 12 to vary the degree of opening of a valve 13 so that the flow rate value in each stage preliminarily set by a flow rate setting circuit 6 and the value obtained from a valve position detecting circuit 7 coincide with each other. When a return switch 2 is operated, the flow rate is returned to the flow rate state stored in a flow rate storage part 18, and for example, water is stopped at the time of water discharge, and the return operation is performed at the time of water stop. Thus, the required flow rate is easily obtained with one switch operation in any case.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention electronically controls the flow rate of a liquid such as tap water.

It concerns electronic faucets.

[Prior Art] In a conventional multifunctional electronic faucet, as shown in FIG. 2, the flow rate is selected by a flow rate selection switch 30, and the flow rate of tap water, etc. is spouted by pressing a water discharge/stop switch 31. It has become.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] If the water discharging state is left undisturbed, the water is automatically shut off after a certain period of time, but this time cannot be set arbitrarily. In addition, there was no effective countermeasure against power outages, and the only option was to switch to manual operation to shut off the water in the event of a power outage.

That is, the multifunctional electronic water faucet having the above configuration has the following problems.

That is, in FIG.

■When trying to obtain a high flow rate from a state in which the flow rate selection switch 30 is displaying a low flow rate, press the -degree flow rate selection switch 30 to select a high flow rate state, and then press the water discharge/water stop switch 31, or Since it is necessary to press the water stop switch 31 to discharge water at a low flow rate, and then press the flow rate selection switch 30 to select a high flow rate state, -
Water cannot be spouted at the required flow rate by operating the switch.

■If you want to continue discharging water beyond a certain water stop time, the water will automatically stop flowing against the will of the faucet user, and if the water stop time is too long for the faucet user. In this case, a large amount of water is wasted until the water shuts off automatically.

■During a power outage, the functions of multifunctional electronic faucets cannot be used.

Therefore, the present invention aims to solve one or more problems.

■Discharge water at a flow rate that is differentiated into at least three levels,
To be able to easily return to the previous flow rate state with a one-touch operation even during discharging water.

■The automatic water stop function can be canceled and water can continue to be discharged.

In addition, faucet users can arbitrarily set the automatic water stop time in advance.
To warn you when you forget to shut off tap water, etc., and automatically shut off the water when the automatic water shutoff time comes, allowing you to use tap water, etc. without wasting it, and to prevent it from running away.

■In the event of a power outage, the system notifies you that there is a power outage and automatically switches the power supply to the auxiliary power supply, allowing the multifunctional electronic water faucet to function satisfactorily even during a power outage.

■The charging circuit charges the auxiliary battery! To ensure that a multi-function electronic water faucet operates even in a power outage by constantly keeping it fully charged without turning on the water.

≧The purpose.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the multifunctional electronic faucet of the present invention has two functions: a flow rate selection switch corresponding to the amount of liquid flow; and five displays indicating the operation of this flow rate selection switch. an operating section including a sounding element that audibly notifies the operation of the flow rate selection switch; a flow rate setting circuit that presets the flow rate corresponding to the operation of the volume selection switch; Flowing flow path: A valve that is provided to variably control the flow rate using the flow rate setting circuit, and a valve position detection circuit that detects the position of the drain corresponding to the degree of opening and closing of this valve.

11. An A/D converter that separately converts analog signals obtained from the flow rate setting circuit and the valve position detection circuit into digital signals; and a control unit that outputs an electric signal instructing the operating direction and operating speed of the valve based on the difference between the value and the value of the digital signal corresponding to the position of the valve detected by the valve position detection circuit.

An actuator that drives the valve using an electric signal output from the control section, a power supply section that operates the flow rate setting circuit, the valve position detection circuit, and the control section, respectively, and a liquid that corresponds to the switch of the operation section. a flow rate storage unit that stores the flow rate state of the storage unit; a return switch that performs whether the only return operation to return to the flow rate state stored in the storage unit is water stoppage and return operation; and a selection whether or not to perform the return operation. A return function selection switch is provided, and the flow rate of liquid such as tap water is controlled by operating the switch on the operating section.

It has a timer circuit that outputs a signal to the control unit, and an automatic water stop time setting switch that sets the automatic water stop time, and the control unit includes the count time of the timer circuit and the water stop time set by the automatic water stop time setting switch. It is equipped with a command means that outputs a water stop operation command only when the water stop time coincides with the time, and an automatic water stop selection switch that can select setting or cancellation of the automatic water stop function, and an alarm when the set water stop time is approaching. When the AC power supply that supplies power to the alarm means and power supply section is cut off, power is supplied to the flow rate setting circuit, the valve position detection circuit, and the control section in place of the DC power supply of the power supply section, which is generated by AC/DC conversion from this AC power supply. An auxiliary battery to be supplied, a power failure U power switching circuit that automatically switches power from the DC power source of the power supply section to the auxiliary battery, a power failure detection circuit that detects that the AC power source is cut off, and this power failure detection circuit. and a notification means for notifying a power outage state detected by.

A charging circuit for the auxiliary battery, a charging current switching circuit that alternately switches the charging current of this charging circuit to a voltage value corresponding to quick charging and normal charging, and whether or not the voltage value of the auxiliary battery is an operable value. and a command means for outputting a switching command to the charging current switching circuit in response to a comparison signal output from the voltage comparison circuit in a control section.

[Function] The multifunctional electronic faucet based on the present invention discharges water at a flow rate corresponding to the switch by operating a switch on the operation unit corresponding to the flow rate, and by operating a return switch, the multi-function electronic faucet can discharge water in any case. You can easily obtain the required flow rate with a single switch operation.

In addition, if you forget to turn off the water, it will alert you and automatically turn off the water at a preset water stop time to prevent tap water from flowing out.

Furthermore, if the AC power supply that supplies power to the power supply section is cut off, the power supply will automatically switch from the DC power supply to the auxiliary battery, and if there is a power outage, it will be notified that there is a power outage, and even in a power outage state, the multifunctional electronic You can use the faucet function.

Then, the auxiliary battery is charged by the charging circuit as necessary, and is constantly kept in a fully charged state.

This allows the multifunctional electronic water faucet to operate reliably even during a power outage.

[Example] Hereinafter, nine embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of nine embodiments of the present invention. 1 is a flow rate selection switch, the number of which corresponds to at least three or more different flow rates.

It is connected to the microcomputer 9. 2 is.

This is a return switch that, when operated, returns to the flow rate state where water was being spouted immediately before the current flow rate state. Reference numeral 3 denotes a display element 9 for notifying the faucet user of the input state of the flow rate selection switch 1 or the return switch 2, etc. Reference numeral 4 denotes a sound generating element that produces nine sounds when the flow rate selection switch 1 or the return switch 2 is operated.

Reference numeral 5 designates an operation unit that controls the flow rate selection switch 1. Said return switch 2. It consists of the display element 3 and the sounding element 4. 6 is a flow rate setting circuit, which is connected to the flow rate selection switch 1;
Corresponding to this, flow values that are differentiated into at least three stages or more are initially set to required flow values in advance. 7 is a valve position detection circuit that detects the degree of opening and closing of a valve provided in a flow path. Reference numeral 8 denotes an A/D converter that converts analog values from the flow rate setting circuit 6 and the valve position detection circuit 7 into digital values individually. 9 is a microcomputer.

Based on the difference between the digital value of the valve position preset by the flow rate setting circuit 6 and the digital value of the valve position detected by the valve position detection circuit 7, command information for the operating direction and operating speed is obtained. Reference numeral 10 denotes an actuator drive circuit that operates the actuator 12 based on command information obtained by the microcomputer 9. Reference numeral 11 denotes a control section, which includes a microcomputer 9 and an actuator drive circuit 10. Reference numeral 12 denotes an actuator, which is driven by an electric signal from the actuator drive circuit 10.

13 is a valve provided in the flow path and connected to the actuator 1;
2 and mechanical connection to open and close the valve to vary the flow rate of tap water, etc. A DC power supply 14 supplies power to the actuator drive circuit 10. 15 is a stabilized power supply, which connects the flow rate setting circuit 6, the valve position detection circuit 7, and the A
/D converter 8 and the microcomputer 9 are activated. 16 is an auxiliary battery that supplies power during a power outage. Reference numeral 17 denotes a power supply section, which includes the DC power supply 14, the stabilized power supply 15, and the auxiliary battery 16. Reference numeral 18 denotes a flow rate storage unit that stores the flow rate state in which water was being spouted immediately before the current flow rate state. Reference numeral 19 denotes a return function selection switch, which can set or cancel the return operation of the return switch 2. 20
is a timer circuit that counts time based on a certain reference time. 21 is an automatic water stop time setting switch.

Automatic water stop time can be set to any time. Reference numeral 22 denotes an automatic water stop selection switch, which can ignore the counting operation of the timer circuit 20 and cancel the automatic water stop operation. 23
is the power switching circuit during power outage.

The auxiliary battery 16 is disconnected from the DC power supply 14 during a power outage.
automatically switches the power to 24 is a power outage detection circuit;
When the DC power source 14 is cut off, a power outage is detected and an electrical signal indicating that there is a power outage is output to the control section 11. A charging circuit 25 charges the auxiliary battery 16. 26
is a charging current switching circuit which switches the charging current of the charging circuit 25 between low current charging and rapid charging. A voltage comparison circuit 27 compares whether the auxiliary battery 16 has a preset reference voltage or higher or not.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be explained.

By operating the flow rate selection switch 1 of the operation unit 5, the display element 3 corresponding to each stage of the flow rate selection switch 1 lights up, for example, and the sound generating element 4 makes a short sound to notify that the operation has been performed. Next, the control unit 11 outputs a command signal to the actuator 12 so that the flow rate value of each stage set in advance by the flow rate setting circuit 6 matches the value obtained from the valve position detection circuit 7, By varying the opening/closing degree of the valve 13, water is spouted at a preset flow rate. When the return function selection switch 19 is in the set state, when the return switch 2 is operated, the flow rate is restored to the flow rate state stored in the flow rate storage section 18, and 9, for example, if water is being spouted, the water is stopped,
Also, if the water is stopped, a return operation is performed. That is, in any case, the required flow rate can be easily obtained with a single switch operation.

Furthermore, when the automatic water stop selection switch 22 is released,
Automatic water shutoff operation can be disabled. In addition, in the state where it is not released, when the time counted by the timer circuit 20 reaches 2, for example, 30 seconds before the automatic water stop time set in advance by the automatic water stop time setting switch 21, the sound generating element 4 starts producing sound. Repeat intermittently. This alerts the faucet user that they have forgotten to turn off the tap water, etc. If the flow rate selection switch 1 or the return switch 2 is not operated within 30 seconds of the alarm, or if the automatic water stop selection switch 22 is not released, the water is automatically stopped and tap water, etc. is released. prevent.

Furthermore, when the AC power supply that supplies power to the power supply section 17 is cut off, the power supply switching circuit 23 automatically switches the power supply from the DC power supply 14 to the auxiliary battery 16, and the power failure detection circuit 24 automatically switches the power supply from the DC power supply 14 to the auxiliary battery 16. Detect whether or not.

If there is a power outage, the display element 3 is blinked, for example, to notify the user of the faucet that there is a power outage.

In addition, the functions of the multifunctional electronic faucet can be used as is even during a power outage.

Moreover, the DC power supply 1
4, the auxiliary battery 16 is constantly charged from the charging circuit 25. That is, the voltage comparison circuit 27 compares the voltage of the auxiliary battery 16 with a preset reference voltage, and if it is determined that the voltage of the auxiliary battery 16 is equal to or higher than the reference voltage, normal charging is performed with a small charging current. If the charging current is determined to be low, the charging current switching circuit 26 switches the charging current to a higher current to perform rapid charging. As a result, the auxiliary battery 16 can be constantly kept fully charged and operation can be performed reliably in a power outage state.

[Effect of the invention] According to the present invention as described above.

■By operating the switch on the control unit that corresponds to the amount of flow, the function discharges water at the flow rate corresponding to the switch.
With the return function of returning to the previous flow rate state, the required flow rate can be easily obtained with a single switch operation in any case.

■Also, if the automatic water stop function is canceled and water continues to flow, and you forget to turn off the tap water, etc., it will alert the faucet user that they have forgotten to turn off the water, and the water will automatically turn off at the set time. This prevents tap water, etc. from running away, and allows the faucet to be used without draining a large amount of water.

■Furthermore, in the event of a power outage, faucet users will be notified of the power outage and power will automatically switch from the DC power supply built into the power supply to the auxiliary battery.

The functions of the multifunctional electronic faucet can be used even during a power outage.

(2) When the power is on other than during a power outage, the charging circuit constantly charges the auxiliary battery to keep it fully charged, thereby ensuring reliable operation even during the power outage.

Remarkable effects such as these can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
3 is a flowchart showing details of initial water stop operation. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing details of actuator drive processing. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing details of switch input processing. The figure is a flowchart showing the details of the charging current switching process, FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the details of the automatic water stop process, and FIG.
The figure is a flowchart showing details of flow rate setting change processing. Figure 9 is a flowchart showing details of the water stop/return process and flow rate selection switch input process. Figure 10 is a flowchart showing details of the L timer interrupt process. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an operating section. 5... Operation unit, 6... Flow rate setting circuit, 7...
Pulp position detection circuit, 8...A/) conversion section,
11...Control unit, 12...A! Chue Yu,
13... Valve, 17... Power supply section, 18...
...Flow rate storage section, 19.Return function selection switch,
20... Timer 1 path, 21... Automatic water stop time setting switch, 2... Automatic water stop selection switch,
23. Multiple power supply switching circuit, 24... 1 path for power failure detection, 25... Charging circuit, 26... Charging (current switching circuit), 27... Voltage comparison circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) An operation comprising a flow rate selection switch corresponding to a greater or lesser flow rate of liquid, a display element that displays the operation of the flow rate selection switch, and a sounding element that notifies the operation of the flow rate selection switch by sound. a flow rate setting circuit that arbitrarily sets a flow rate in advance corresponding to the operation of the flow rate selection switch; a valve provided in a flow path through which the liquid flows and whose flow rate can be varied by the flow rate setting circuit; and a degree of opening and closing of the valve. a valve position detection circuit that detects the position of the corresponding valve; an A/D converter that individually converts analog signals obtained from the flow rate setting circuit and the valve position detection circuit into digital signals; and the flow rate setting circuit. The operating direction and operating speed of the valve are commanded from the difference between the value of the digital signal corresponding to the position of the valve preset by the valve and the value of the digital signal corresponding to the position of the valve detected by the valve position detection circuit. a control unit that outputs an electric signal; an actuator that drives the valve using the electric signal output from the control unit; a power supply unit that operates the flow rate setting circuit, the valve position detection circuit, and the control unit, respectively; a flow rate storage unit that stores the flow rate state of the liquid corresponding to the switch of the operating unit; a return switch that performs either a return operation to return to the flow rate state stored in the storage unit or a water stop and return operation; A multifunctional electronic water faucet, comprising a return function selection switch that can select whether or not to perform a return operation, and which controls the flow rate of a liquid such as tap water by operating the switch on the operating section. 2) It has a timer circuit that outputs signals to the control unit and an automatic water stop time setting switch that sets the automatic water stop time, and the count time of the timer circuit and the setting by the automatic water stop time setting switch are included in the control unit. a command means for outputting a water shutoff operation command only when the set water shutoff time coincides with the set water shutoff time; and an automatic water shutoff selection switch that can select setting or cancellation of the automatic water shutoff function; 2. The multifunctional electronic faucet according to claim 1, further comprising an alarm means for issuing an alarm. 3) When the AC power supply supplying power to the power supply section is cut off, power is supplied from this AC power supply to the flow rate setting circuit, valve position detection circuit, and control section in place of the DC power supply of the power supply section, which is generated by AC/DC conversion. an auxiliary battery; a power outage switching circuit that automatically switches power from the DC power source of the power supply unit to the auxiliary battery; a power outage detection circuit that detects when the AC power supply is cut off; 3. The multifunctional electronic water faucet according to claim 1, further comprising a notification means for notifying a power outage state. 4) A charging circuit for the auxiliary battery, a charging current switching circuit that alternately switches the charging current of this charging circuit to a voltage value corresponding to quick charging and normal charging, and whether the voltage value of the auxiliary battery is an operable value. 4. The multifunction device according to claim 3, further comprising: a voltage comparison circuit for comparing whether or not the charging current is different; and a command means for outputting a switching command to the charging current switching circuit in accordance with a comparison signal output from the voltage comparison circuit in a control section. Electric faucet.