JPH03181378A - Washing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent the resticking of contaminations by applying the oscillation energy from an ultrasonic electric power generator to the liquid injected from a liquid treating part to an object to be washed. CONSTITUTION:The liquid 21, such as water or hot water, supplied from a pipe 20 is led out to a pipe 22 and the ultrasonic energy is applied from the tip of a horn part 13 to the liquid 21 along the outflow direction of the liquid 21 ejected to the pipe 22 within a case 23 to store the liquid 21. The thickness oscillations of piezoelectric oscillators 11, 12 are amplitude-amplified by the horn part 13 and arrive at the tip from which the ultrasonic energy is radiated when the ultrasonic electric power generator 10 is started. Cavitation bubbles are generated in the liquid 21 and the oscillation noises are suppressed to a lower level. The execution of maintenance and inspection is thus facilitated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a cleaning device for cleaning utensils such as tableware, glasses, and kitchen knives. This invention relates to a sonic cleaning device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Conventionally, this type of cleaning apparatus has been mainly used for industrial purposes, and has generally had a configuration as shown in FIG.

In other words, as shown in the figure, liquids such as water and cleaning solvents
A liquid tank 2 for storing the liquid is provided, and a piezoelectric vibrator 3 is attached to the bottom surface of the liquid tank 2.

The piezoelectric vibrator 3 is configured to receive ultrasonic power from the vibrator drive circuit 4 and to be excited at its resonant frequency.

5 is a housing in which these II% precept parts are housed. 6 is a cooling fan.

When the vibrator drive circuit 4 is activated, the piezoelectric vibrator 3 receives ultrasonic vibration energy of, for example, 40 ktlz and vibrates near its resonance frequency. Therefore, ultrasonic vibrations are radiated to the liquid 1 in the liquid tank 2.

The object 7 to be cleaned, such as a plate placed in the liquid tank 2, receives this ultrasonic vibration energy through the liquid 2, so that oil stains etc. adhering to its surface are cleaned by the so-called ultrasonic cleaning action. be done.

The ultrasonic vibration frequency is 20 kHz = 100 k
Many of them are about llz, and are selected appropriately depending on the type of object 7 to be cleaned and the type of dirt. The type of liquid also depends on the type of object 7 to be cleaned and the type of dirt, such as pure water, solvent, etc.
Chemical detergents are used.

On the other hand, attempts to use such an ultrasonic cleaning device as a cleaning device in the home have been studied for some time. Those that are put into practical use in
Some exist.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, as is clear from FIG. 8, the ultrasonic cleaning apparatus having such a configuration has some disadvantages. That is, since the structure is such that the liquid 1 is stored in the liquid tank 2, even if the object to be cleaned 7 is subjected to ultrasonic cleaning, when the object to be cleaned 7 is taken out from the liquid tank 2, the dirt will adhere again. It had a big drawback:

Therefore, additional rinsing is required.
However, it was found that the cleaning effect of ultrasonic cleaning was significantly reduced.Furthermore, simply soaking it in the ultrasonic cleaning tank 2 as shown in Figure 8 will not cause it to adhere to household cooking utensils (plates, etc.). In many cases, manual cleaning was necessary to remove large sticky stains. Furthermore, at an ultrasonic frequency of several tens of ktlz, the vibration noise of cavitation bubbles generated in the liquid I is large, which is also disadvantageous for household use. That is, as mentioned above, the dirt that adheres to the object to be cleaned 7 in the home comes in various sizes, and considering the ultrasonic cleaning action that the lower the frequency of ultrasonic energy, the easier it is to remove large dirt. A low ultrasonic frequency of about 50 kHz had to be selected, and as a result, the above-mentioned problem of bubble vibration noise could not be avoided.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the problems of the prior art, the present invention has the following configuration.

That is, a power supply unit obtained from a commercial power source, an ultrasonic power generator that receives power from the power supply unit and generates ultrasonic power, and an electric power generator 8 driven by the ultrasonic power generator.
! 1 mechanical transducer and a liquid processing unit that supplies a cleaning liquid such as water to the object to be cleaned, and the ultrasonic vibration of the electromechanical transducer is applied to the liquid sprayed from the liquid processing unit to the object to be cleaned. It has a structure that gives energy.

Further, the configuration is such that the output of the ultrasonic power generator is supplied to the electromechanical converter via an isolation transformer, and the electric power isolated from the power source is supplied to the electromechanical converter.

Furthermore, this ultrasonic power generator includes an oscillator that oscillates at an arbitrary frequency, a power control unit that adjusts the power supplied to the oscillator from a power supply unit, and an electromechanical converter that is driven by the ultrasonic power generator. The ultrasonic wave output control section receives the output of the resonance state detector and controls the power control section and the oscillator.

In addition, the resonance state detector is configured to detect a phase difference between the voltage of the electromechanical converter and the t-current, and the ultrasonic output control section oscillates based on the phase difference detection signal, and controls the oscillation frequency and power of the transducer. The configuration is such that the output voltage of the section is controlled.

Furthermore, the liquid processing section is configured to be freely attached to any liquid supply port such as a water faucet.

Effects With the above structure, the present invention has the effects described below.

A configuration comprising a power supply section, an ultrasonic power generator, an electromechanical transducer, and a liquid processing section, and applying ultrasonic vibration energy of the electromechanical transducer to the liquid sprayed from the liquid processing section onto the object to be cleaned. By doing this, the body is directly collided with the object to be cleaned, which has both the kinetic energy of the liquid ejected from the liquid processing unit and the ultrasonic vibration energy, and is suitable for cleaning large and small objects in the home. This product cleans various types of dirt without re-rinsing and uses a complex cleaning action.

In addition, with a configuration in which the output of this ultrasonic power generator is supplied to an electromechanical converter via an isolation transformer, isolated power from a power source such as a commercial power source is supplied to the electromechanical converter for domestic use. This is to ensure safety in

Furthermore, the ultrasonic power generator includes an oscillator that oscillates the ultrasonic power generator at an arbitrary frequency, a power control unit that adjusts the power supplied to the oscillator from a power supply unit, and an electromechanical converter that is driven by the ultrasonic power generator. The ultrasonic wave output control unit receives the output of the resonant B detector and controls the power control unit and the oscillator. This system tracks resonance frequency changes due to changes in the acoustic impedance of the ultrasonic radiation surface of the electromechanical transducer, which arises from the configuration in which liquid is ejected from the liquid processing section, and applies highly efficient and stable ultrasonic output to the ejected liquid. It radiates.

Further, the resonance state detector is configured to detect a phase difference between voltage and current of the electromechanical converter, and the ultrasonic output control section controls the oscillation frequency of the oscillator based on the phase difference detection signal, and also controls the oscillation frequency of the oscillator based on the phase difference detection signal. By controlling the output voltage of the control section, the oscillation frequency is controlled to adjust the phase difference to a predetermined value, and the output voltage is controlled so that the ultrasonic output becomes a predetermined value. As such, it stabilizes the operation of the electromechanical converter, and serves to realize high conversion efficiency and stable cleaning ability of the electromechanical converter under various usage conditions.

Furthermore, by configuring the liquid processing section so that it can be attached to any liquid supply port such as a water faucet, it can be easily attached to any water faucet or hot water mixer faucet of any household sink. Therefore, it is possible to realize a cleaning device that has a compact structure with an extremely small installation area and is easy to install. Furthermore, since it is easy to remove, maintenance and inspection can be easily performed.

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, examples of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a household cleaning device showing one embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure, 10 is an ultrasonic power generator, and a vibrating body 1 has an annular piezoelectric vibrator 11, 12 and a horn part 13.
4. Ultrasonic power is supplied to the electromechanical transducer 17 from the matching vibrator 15 and the port 16.

18 is an electrode terminal, and this electromechanical transducer is a type of ultrasonic transducer called a Langevin type transducer. Note that the ultrasonic power generator IO is supplied with electric power from a power source (not shown) such as a commercial power source. Reference numeral 19 denotes a liquid processing section, which leads out the liquid 21 such as water or hot water supplied from the pipe 20 to the pipe 22, and also
A configuration is realized in which ultrasonic energy is applied to the liquid 2 from the tip of the horn part 13 along the outflow direction of the liquid 21 jetted into the pipe 22 within the case 23 that stores the liquid 21. 24 is a plate as an example of the object to be cleaned, and is cleaned in the state shown in the figure.

When the ultrasonic power generator IO is activated, the piezoelectric vibrator 11
．． The thickness vibration 12 is amplified in amplitude by the horn portion 13 and reaches the tip of the hand. This electromechanical converter 17 has approximately 100
Since it is configured to have a resonant frequency of approximately kHz to 500 kHz, ultrasonic energy at this frequency is radiated from the tip of the horn portion 13. Thanks to this relatively high frequency ultrasonic vibration, the vibration noise of the cavity silane bubbles generated in the liquid 21 can be suppressed to an extremely low level. Moreover, since the liquid 21, which has the combined energy of the kinetic energy of the liquid 21 and the ultrasonic energy, which is force-fed from the vibrator 21 by tap water pressure or the like, is sprayed onto the dirty surface of the dish 24, the high-frequency ultrasonic wave Even with sonic energy, the ability to clean large stains remains relatively good. Therefore, it is possible to realize a cleaning device with low parking noise and excellent cleaning ability. Since the dishes 24 are washed with flowing liquid as shown in the figure, there is no need to rinse them again, and there is provided a washing device that can easily and easily wash dishes and other household utensils. can do. In addition, in the case of a configuration in which ultrasonic waves are emitted into the liquid stored in a liquid tank, a large amount of ultrasonic power is required because the ultrasonic energy is dispersed throughout the liquid tank, but in the configuration of the present invention, ultrasonic energy is can be concentrated and used for cleaning, making it possible to realize highly efficient use of ultrasonic power.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a household cleaning device showing another embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals as in FIG. 1 represent corresponding components.

The electromechanical transducer 17 is composed of a disc-shaped piezoelectric vibrator. This piezoelectric vibrator 17 is placed in the position shown in the figure with a ring-shaped seal part 25 and a ring-shaped support part 26, and is pressed against a fixing part 28 with a cap 27 and fixed to the case 23. There is. In the case of such a configuration, the configuration is simple with fewer components, and a compact cleaning device can be realized.

However, in such a configuration, the resonant frequency of the electromechanical transducer 17 is quite high because the resonant frequency of thickness vibration must be used. for example,
If the thickness of the electromechanical transducer 17 is 1 to 5 am, the resonant frequency will be about several Mllz to several hundred kilz, which is not optimal for cleaning large dirt or sticky dirt as a household cleaning device. Since the structure is such that the ejected liquid emits this ultrasonic vibration and causes it to collide with the object to be cleaned, good cleaning performance can be achieved thanks to the use of composite energy.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the above-described household ultrasonic cleaning device, and the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 2 and 3 represent corresponding components.

Reference numeral 30 denotes a power supply unit, which is composed of a commercial power supply 31 and the like, and supplies power to the ultrasonic power generator IO. The output of the ultrasonic power generator IO is supplied to the piezoelectric vibrator F, which is the main component of the electromechanical transducer. occurs in This ultrasonic output is applied to the liquid in the ultrasonic irradiation chamber 32 of the liquid processing section 19, and the liquid ejected from the ultrasonic irradiation chamber 32 collides with the object 24 to be cleaned, such as a plate, as shown by the arrow in the figure. Ru. 33 is a repressurizing pump or a water faucet, which supplies liquid to the ultrasonic irradiation chamber 32 at an arbitrary pressure. Therefore, the object to be cleaned 24 is bombarded with a liquid such as water or hot water that has a composite energy of jet kinetic energy due to this water pressure and ultrasonic energy, so it cannot be irradiated with only ultrasonic energy or cleaned with only water pressure. In comparison, it reduces pollution of the surrounding environment due to liquid scattering,
Moreover, cleaning can be performed with excellent cleaning ability.

The ultrasonic power generator 10 includes a power control section 34 that receives the output from the power supply section 30 and adjusts the power to the piezoelectric vibrator 17 to a predetermined value, an oscillator 35 that oscillates at an arbitrary frequency, and an output of the oscillator 35. an output transformer 36 that electrically insulates and supplies the piezoelectric vibrator 17; a resonance state detector 37 that detects the resonance state of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 by detecting the phase difference between the voltage and current of the piezoelectric vibrator 17; It is comprised of an ultrasonic output control section 38 that controls the power control section 34 and the oscillator 35 based on the detection signal of the detector 37. The ultrasonic output control unit 38 detects the difference between the resonance frequency and the oscillation frequency of the oscillator 35 by the resonance state detector 37 and controls the oscillation frequency to be approximately equal to the resonance frequency, and also controls the oscillation frequency to be approximately equal to the resonance frequency. A power value signal is obtained from the signal of the resonance state detector 37, and the power control unit 34 is controlled so that the input power becomes a predetermined value. With this configuration,
The piezoelectric vibrator 17 can always irradiate the liquid with a stable desired ultrasonic output regardless of changes in environmental conditions such as the quality and temperature of the liquid or changes in the characteristics of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 itself. It can exhibit efficient cleaning action.

FIG. 4 is an electric circuit diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention,
Components with the same symbols as in FIG. 3 are corresponding components.

In the figure, a power supply unit 30 is composed of a commercial power supply 31 and a diode bridge 40, and a full-wave rectified voltage is transmitted to a power control unit 3.
Supply to 4. The force control section 34 includes a transistor 41,
Choke coil 42, capacitor 43, diode 44
Be more careful. Based on the detection signal of the current transformer 45 for input current detection, the ultrasonic output control unit 38 controls the switching pulse width of this transistor 41, and controls the diode 44 so that the input current and therefore the input power fall within a predetermined value.
Adjust the output voltage value. As a result, the ultrasonic output of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 is controlled to approximately a predetermined value.

The oscillation R335 is caused by a transistor 46, a diode 47,
It is composed of capacitors 48 and 49, and together with the primary winding of the insulated output transformer 36, constitutes a so-called resonant inverter. The ultrasonic output control unit 38 receives signals from a current transformer 37a that detects the current flowing through the piezoelectric vibrator 17 and a detection winding 37b that detects an output voltage proportional to the applied voltage, and determines the phase difference between the two detection signals. The switching frequency of the transistor 46 is controlled so that the phase difference becomes a predetermined phase difference. Therefore, the piezoelectric vibrator 17 is always supplied with a voltage having a frequency close to its resonance frequency, ensuring highly efficient ultrasonic vibration. Note that 51 is a capacitor for impedance matching. transistor 4
The switching frequency of piezoelectric vibrator 17 may change.
If the impedance changes on the radiation surface of the ultrasonic wave, the ultrasonic output tends to change. The terminal voltage of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 is adjusted to control the input power to a desired value.Therefore, the ultrasonic output of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 is always kept at the desired value. In order to control the current constant, the voltage of the piezoelectric vibrator 17 and the i current are detected without using the current transformer 45, and the product of these is calculated, and negative feedback control is performed so that the result of this operation becomes a desired value. The ultrasonic output control unit 38 may be configured to perform the following steps.
The current transformer 37a, which is the resonance state detector 37, and the voltage detection winding 37b can also serve as ultrasonic output detection means.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a cleaning device showing one embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 1 to 3 represent corresponding components.

A pipe 56 is led out from the wall 55 and a water tap 57 is attached. Therefore, when the knob 58 is opened, water or hot water is sprayed onto the object to be cleaned 24 through the liquid processing section 19 as shown in the figure. The ultrasonic power generator 10 is housed in a case and attached to a wall 55 as shown in the figure. The output voltage is configured to be supplied to the piezoelectric vibrator 17 housed in the case 27 of the liquid processing section 19 through the lead wire 59, and as described above, the output voltage is supplied to the piezoelectric vibrator 17 housed in the case 27 of the liquid processing section 19. Can provide ultrasonic energy. Therefore, it is possible to perform efficient and good cleaning with a liquid that has the combined energy of ultrasonic energy and ejected kinetic energy from tap water pressure, greatly reducing the work of manually washing away dirt from dishes, etc. This makes it possible to realize a cleaning device that greatly streamlines housework.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a cleaning device showing another embodiment, and the same reference numerals as in FIG. 5 indicate corresponding components. In this embodiment, an ultrasonic power generator 10 is installed on the outlet side of the water faucet 57.
is attached, and the ultrasonic power generator 10 is configured to receive power from a commercial power source (not shown) through a lead wire 60. This configuration has the advantage that the ultrasonic power generator 10 is integrated with the water faucet 57, making installation work simple.

FIG. 7 shows still another embodiment of the present invention, and the same reference numerals as in FIG. 6 indicate corresponding components.

In this embodiment, the ultrasonic power generator 10 is attached to a pipe 20, and the tip end 61 of the pipe 20 is attached to a faucet 63 having a water faucet 57 with screws 62. Therefore, the cleaning device of this embodiment can be freely attached to any water faucet, and is extremely easy to use and has a high degree of freedom in construction.

A liquid detector 65 that flows through the pipe 20 is provided at the joint 64 where the ultrasonic power generator 10 is attached to the pipe 20 . The liquid detector 65 is provided with a switch that closes when a predetermined period of time (for example, 1 second) has elapsed since the liquid stopped flowing in the pipe 20. When this switch is closed, commercial power is supplied from the lead wire 60. It is configured to be supplied to an ultrasonic power generator IO. Therefore,
Since the piezoelectric vibrator receives electric power and starts vibrating after the ultrasonic emission part in the liquid processing section 19 is filled with liquid, it is possible to reliably prevent the piezoelectric vibrator from being destroyed or having characteristics deteriorated due to idle operation.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

That is, the configuration includes a power supply section, an ultrasonic power generating 2L electromechanical transducer, and a liquid processing section, and applies ultrasonic vibration energy of the electromechanical transducer to the liquid sprayed from the liquid processing section onto the object to be cleaned. By doing so, the liquid having both the ejection kinetic energy and the ultrasonic vibration energy ejected from the liquid processing section is directly impinged on the object to be cleaned, and is suitable for cleaning large and small objects in the home. Since it cleans various stains with a combined cleaning action, it can be cleaned well without rinsing again. In particular, since the structure is such that a liquid with complex energy collides with the object to be cleaned, a good cleaning effect can be obtained due to the ultrasonic cleaning action even if the jetting force of the liquid is small and there is little splashing of the liquid. A cleaning device can be provided. moreover,
As is well known, the ultrasonic cleaning effect has a great cleaning effect on oil stains and fine dirt, so the jet of liquid removes large stains, and ultrasonic cleaning removes oil stains and fine stains, making it possible to eliminate the need for re-cleaning. It is possible to provide an excellent cleaning device that is free of waste.

In addition, a commercial 'RB
Since the configuration is such that power is supplied to the electromechanical converter insulated from the power source section, it is possible to ensure high safety of the cleaning device that uses liquid such as water. especially,
In the case of domestic use, commercial RI sources are often used, so this configuration is extremely important for ensuring safety, and realizes a cleaning device with excellent safety.

Also, an oscillator that oscillates the ultrasonic power generator at an arbitrary frequency, a power control unit that adjusts the power supplied to the oscillator from a power supply unit, and an electromechanical converter that is driven by the ultrasonic power generator. and an ultrasonic output control section that receives the output of the resonance state detector and controls the power control section and the oscillator. Even under various conditions, it can track the resonant frequency change of the electromechanical transducer and emit highly efficient and stable ultrasonic output to the ejected liquid.
It is possible to provide a cleaning device that can always perform stable and highly efficient cleaning.

Further, the resonance state detector is configured to detect a phase difference between voltage and current of the electromechanical converter, and the ultrasonic output control section controls the oscillation frequency of the oscillator based on the phase difference detection signal, and also controls the oscillation frequency of the oscillator based on the phase difference detection signal. By controlling the output voltage of the control unit and controlling the oscillation frequency to adjust this phase difference to a predetermined value, the electromechanical converter can always operate with high efficiency at a frequency near the resonance frequency. Since the output voltage can be controlled so that the ultrasonic output becomes a predetermined value, the ultrasonic output of the electromechanical transducer can be controlled to a desired value. Therefore, it is possible to realize a cleaning device that can exhibit highly efficient and stable cleaning performance under various usage conditions.

In addition, by configuring the liquid processing unit so that it can be attached to any liquid supply port such as a water faucet, it can be easily attached to the water faucet of any home sink or the liquid outlet of a hot water mixing faucet. . Therefore, it is possible to realize a cleaning device that has a high degree of freedom in installation work and requires an extremely small installation area. In other words, the cleaning device has a compact structure and is easy to install.1 Furthermore, since it is easy to remove, maintenance and inspection can be easily performed.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a sectional view of a cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the same embodiment, and Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 4 is an electric circuit diagram of a cleaning device showing an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 5 is an external view showing an installation example of the washing device showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 6 is an electric circuit diagram of a cleaning device showing an embodiment of the present invention. An installation external view of a cleaning device showing an example,
FIG. 7 is an installed external view of a cleaning device showing still another embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a conventional cleaning device. 10... Ultrasonic power generator, 17...
Electromechanical converter, 19...Liquid processing section, 24.
...Object to be cleaned, 30...Power supply section, 36.
...Isolation transformer, 34...Power control unit, 35...Occillator, 37...Resonance state detector, 38...Ultrasonic output control section.

Claims (5)

[Claims] (1) A power source obtained from a commercial power source, an ultrasonic power generator that receives power from the power source and generates ultrasonic power, an electromechanical converter driven by the ultrasonic power generator, and a A cleaning device comprising a liquid processing section that supplies a cleaning liquid such as water to the object to be cleaned, and applying ultrasonic vibration energy of the electromechanical transducer to the liquid sprayed from the liquid processing section onto the object to be cleaned. Device. (2) The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the output of the ultrasonic power generator is supplied to the electromechanical converter via an isolation transformer. (3) An ultrasonic power generator includes an oscillator that oscillates at an arbitrary frequency, a power control unit that adjusts the power supplied to the oscillator from a power supply unit, and an electric machine driven by the ultrasonic power generator. The cleaning device according to claim 1, comprising a resonance state detector of a converter, and an ultrasonic output control section that receives power from the resonance state detector and controls the output control section and the oscillator. . (4) The resonance state detector is configured to detect the phase difference between the voltage and current of the electromechanical converter, and the ultrasonic output control section controls the oscillation frequency of the oscillator and the power control section based on the phase difference detection signal. The cleaning device according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning device is configured to control the output voltage. (5) The cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the liquid processing section is configured to be freely attached to any liquid supply port such as a water faucet.