JPH0657485U - Water purifier - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] To provide a water purifier with a compact outer shape, excellent durability, and easy maintenance by improving the structure of a flow path switching valve for backwashing filter media. A flow path switching valve A includes planar slide contact surfaces 20a and 21a that are in sliding contact with each other, and a valve seat 20 and a valve body 21 that are relatively rotatable about a central axis 28 by a predetermined angle. A plurality of valve openings 22 to 25 provided around the central axis of the valve seat, and a valve opening 30 for switching the communication state between the plurality of valve openings provided in the valve seat when the valve body is rotated, and a valve body Is provided with communication ports 31 and 32 for communicating a plurality of specific valve openings among the plurality of valve openings provided in the valve seat when the valve is rotated, and a rotating member 29 for rotating the valve body. Then, on the sliding contact surface, O-rings 33 to 35 are provided around the valve port 30 and the communication ports 31 and 32 so as to keep the communication state between them and the valve ports of the valve seat in a watertight manner.
Also, the adsorbent cartridge 7 and the filter medium cartridge 13
They are housed in outer cases 6 and 12, which can be divided into two parts, respectively.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention is provided with a backwashing mechanism that is used by connecting to a faucet of a tap water, and when the filter medium becomes clogged, the flow direction of the water passing through the filter medium layer is reversed to remove the clogged solid matter. In this regard, the present invention relates to a water purifier having an improved flow path switching valve for the reverse flow.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 The above-mentioned flow path switching valve incorporated in a conventional water purifier has one or more liquid passage ports in each of the inner and outer double cylinders that are slidably contacted with each other to determine whether the inner cylinder or the outer cylinder is rotated. The connection state of the water passage pipes connected to the respective liquid passage ports is changed over, and thereby the flow direction of the water passing through the filter medium layer is changed over.

[0003]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 However, since the flow path switching valve of this type is too bulky compared to the size of the water purifier body, it is generally desirable to install it in a small kitchen like a water purifier so that it is not conspicuous. It wasn't suitable to be installed in the equipment. In addition, it is difficult to maintain the liquid-tightness of the communication ports of the liquid inlets provided in the inner and outer double cylinders, the seal mechanism becomes complicated, the number of parts increases, the manufacturing cost increases, and the durability is improved. There was a problem. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a flow path switching valve having a new structure, which has a relatively simple structure and can be made compact in outer shape, has a small number of parts, has excellent durability, and can be provided at low cost. To provide a water purifier with.

[0004]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 In order to achieve the above object, the water purifier according to the present invention adheres to the filter medium when the filter medium becomes clogged, by reversing the flow direction of water passing through the filter layer by the attached flow path switching valve. In the one provided with a so-called backwashing mechanism for removing the solid matter, the flow path switching valve A is provided with flat sliding contact surfaces 20a, 21a that are in sliding contact with each other, and is provided around the central axis 28. A valve seat 20 and a valve body 21 which are rotatable by a predetermined angle, a plurality of valve openings 22 to 25 provided around a central axis of the valve seat 20, and the valve body 21, The valve opening 30 communicating with a specific valve opening provided on the valve seat 20 depending on the direction, and a plurality of specific valve openings among the valve openings provided on the valve seat 20 depending on the rotation direction. The communication ports 31 and 32 for communicating with each other and the valve body 21 at a predetermined angle. And configured to include a rotating member 29 to be. The surroundings of the valve opening 30 and the communication ports 31 and 32 provided on the valve body 21 are in communication with the valve openings 22 to 25 provided on the valve seat 20, respectively. It is advisable to provide O-rings 33 to 35 that keep watertightness at 0a and 21a. Further, the deodorizing / decolorizing unit B having the decolorizing / deodorizing adsorbent cartridge 7 housed in the outer case 6 and the filtering unit C having the filter cartridge 13 for filtering solid impurities contained in the outer case 12 are provided together. Each of the outer cases 6 and 12 may be divided into upper and lower halves in the lower part.

[0005]

[Action]

 If the filter medium becomes clogged, the rotating member 29 of the attached flow path switching valve A is rotated to the washing operation side, and the flow of water that has been passing through the filter medium layer in the forward direction is reversed. In order to change the direction, the communication state of the valve seats 20 and the valve ports 22 to 25, 30 provided in the valve body 21 is switched. Since the valve seat 20 and the valve body 21 are configured such that the sliding contact surfaces 20a, 21a thereof are made flat and the valve port is provided on the sliding contact surface, the overall shape of the flow path switching valve A is flat and compact. It is put together in the form. In addition, the sliding contact surfaces 20a and 21a between the valve seat and the valve body can be secured only by disposing the O-rings 33 to 35 around the valve opening 30 and the communication ports 31 and 32 provided in the valve body 21. It is truly sealed and the durability of the sealed part is enhanced. Further, since the deodorizing / decolorizing unit B containing the adsorbent cartridge 7 for decolorizing / deodorizing and the filtering unit C containing the filter medium cartridge 13 for filtering solid impurities are provided side by side, two types of different durability are provided. Each of the filter material and the adsorbent can be replaced at a proper time, and the replacement can be easily and quickly performed by simply dividing the outer cases 6 and 12 that can be divided into two parts below.

[0006]

【Example】

 An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The casing of the water purifier is made of plastic, and as shown in FIG. 1, an upper case 2 is fitted to the upper edge portion of the lower case 1 having an oval saucer shape. A cylindrical deodorization / decolorization unit B is installed on the upper surface on the right side (in the figure) of the lower case 1, and a flow path switching valve A is installed below the deodorization / decolorization unit B. . A cylindrical filtration unit C is installed on the upper surface of the lower case 1 on the left half side. An inlet joint 3 for introducing purified water such as tap water is provided at the lower outside of the deodorizing / decolorizing unit B, and an outlet joint 4 for taking purified water is provided at the center of the lower surface of the filtering unit C. The base end side of the purified water outlet pipe 5 is connected so as to be able to turn left and right.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the deodorizing / decolorizing unit B has a structure in which an adsorbent cartridge 7 is replaceably housed in a cylindrical outer case 6. The outer case 6 is composed of a saucer-shaped base portion 6A and a cap-shaped cover portion 6B that is watertightly screwed to the upper edge portion of the base portion 6A via the O-ring 8. In the center of the base portion 6A, a communication hole 6c is provided for the inlet port of the flow path switching valve A, which will be described later. The adsorbent cartridge 7 is configured by filling an inner case 9 whose outer diameter is somewhat smaller than the inner diameter of the outer case 6 with antibacterial activated carbon 10 that adsorbs odors and colors. A water inlet hole 9a is provided on the top surface of the inner case 9, and a water outlet hole 9b is provided at the center of the bottom surface. The adsorbent cartridge 7 is placed on the base 6A with the cover 6B of the outer case 6 removed, and the lower end of the cover 6B is screwed into the upper edge of the base 6A. The pressing member 6d provided on the ceiling surface presses the top surface of the inner case 9 so that the bottom surface of the pressing member 6d is watertightly pressed against the upper surface of the inner case 9 through the O-ring 11 arranged on the peripheral edge of the upper surface of the base portion 6A. Has become. In this state, a water passage gap a is formed between the outer case 6 and the inner case 9.

On the other hand, the filtration unit C also has a configuration similar to that of the deodorization / decolorization unit B as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the filter medium cartridge 13 can be replaced in the cylindrical outer case 12. It has a housed configuration. The outer case 12 is composed of a saucer-shaped base portion 12A and a cap-shaped cover portion 12B that is watertightly screwed to the base portion 12A via an O-ring 14. The filter medium cartridge 13 has a structure in which a fiber membrane assembly filter medium 16 (see FIG. 2) is incorporated in an inner case 15 whose outer diameter is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the outer case 12. This fiber membrane assembly filter medium 16 is formed by bundling a large number of tubular fiber membranes (manufactured by Nitto Denko Corporation) having the ability to filter fine solid impurities and bending them into a U-shape to synthesize the bent ends. It is bundled with a resin binder. The upper and lower ends of the inner case 15 are open, and the converging portion of the fiber membrane assembly filter medium 16 is watertightly fitted (integrally molded) to the lower end opening. The filter medium cartridge 13 has the cover portion 12B of the outer case 12 removed, is placed on the base portion 12A, and the lower end of the cover portion 12B is screwed into the base portion 12A. The pressing member 12c provided on the upper side presses the top surface of the inner case 15, and the lower portion of the outer peripheral surface of the fitting case 12d is concentrically provided on the upper surface of the base portion 12A. It is designed to be watertightly fitted. In this state, a cylindrical water passage gap b is formed between the outer case 12 and the inner case 15.

Now, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the flow path switching valve A made by molding plastic has a circular shape that is concentrically screwed and fixed to the lower surface of the base portion 6A of the outer case 6. A saucer-shaped valve seat 20 and a disc-shaped valve body 21 which is concentrically slidably in contact with the upper surface 20a (sliding contact surface) of the valve seat 20 and is rotatable left and right by a predetermined angle. It is configured. A shaft hole 20b is provided in the center of the sliding contact surface 20a of the valve seat 20, and the sliding contact surface 20a is arranged at four positions around the shaft hole 20b by the arrangements shown in FIGS. 22 to 25 are provided so as to penetrate vertically. Further, an arc-shaped guide groove 26 for restricting the rotation range of the valve body 21 is provided. The valve seat 20 is fitted onto a short cylindrical fitting flange 6e concentrically provided on the lower surface of the base portion 6A (see FIG. 3) and screwed onto the base portion 6A, so that the fitting flange 6e is secured. The lower end is pressed against the O-ring 27 arranged on the valve seat 20, and the valve seat 20 is watertightly joined to the base portion 6A.

A low peripheral wall is formed around the peripheral edge of the upper surface of the valve body 21, and a recessed portion in the peripheral wall is used as an inlet port connected to the outlet hole 9 b of the inner case 9. At the center of the lower surface 21a (sliding contact surface) of the valve body 21, a central shaft 28 that is loosely fitted in the shaft hole 20b of the valve seat 20 is provided as shown in FIG. A locking portion (not shown) for locking the base end of a lever 29 (rotating member, see FIGS. 5, 6 and 8) for rotating the valve body 21 left and right by a predetermined angle is attached to the central shaft 28. It is provided. The sliding contact surface 21a is provided with a valve opening 30 which vertically communicates with either the valve opening 23 or 24 provided in the valve seat 20 depending on the rotational direction of the valve body 21. There is. Further, the sliding contact surface 21a has a circular arc groove-shaped communication port for communicating the valve ports 22 and 23 of the valve seat 20 with each other when the valve body 21 is rotated clockwise as shown in FIG. 31 and a communication port 32 in the shape of an arc groove that allows the valve ports 24 and 25 to communicate with each other when rotated counterclockwise as shown in FIG.

Further, the sliding contact surface 21a is provided with annular grooves around the valve opening 30 and both the communication ports 31 and 32 for mounting the O-rings 33 to 35 in a partially buried state, respectively. The O-rings 33 to 35, etc. are arranged so that the predetermined communication states of the valve ports 20 provided on the valve seat 20 and the valve body 21 are kept watertight at the sliding contact surfaces 20a and 21a. There is. The sliding contact gap between the shaft hole 20b and the central shaft 28 is kept watertight by the O-ring 36 fitted on the central shaft 28. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the rotation range of the valve body 21 is regulated by loosely fitting the projection-like stopper 37 provided on the sliding contact surface 21a into the guide groove 26 provided on the valve seat 20. Controlled.

Then, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, of the valve openings 22 to 25 of the valve seat 20, the valve opening 22 has a hose joint 40, a hose 41, and a filtration unit that are sequentially connected to the lower end thereof. It is connected to the outlet joint 4 via a hose joint 42 projecting from the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 12A of C and a communication passage 43 provided on the bottom surface of the base portion 12A. Further, the valve port 23 is provided with a hose joint 44, which is sequentially connected to the lower end thereof, a hose 45, a hose joint 46 which is protruded from the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 12A, and a communication passage 47 which is provided on the bottom surface of the base portion 12A. And is communicated with a communication hole 48 penetrating the side wall of the recess 12e (see FIG. 1) provided at the center of the upper surface of the base 12A. Further, the valve port 24 has a hose joint 49 successively provided at its lower end, a hose 50, a hose joint 51 projecting from the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 12A of the filtration unit C, and a communication penetrating the side wall of the base portion 12A. The hole 52 communicates with the gap b between the outer case 12 and the inner case 15. A drain joint 53 for washing water is provided at the lower end of the valve port 25.

A water drain valve (not shown) is incorporated in the hose joint 49 connected to the valve port 24. This drain valve is urged to open by a weak spring, but during use of the water purifier, the water pressure of the water to be purified (tap water, etc.) keeps it closed against this spring force, and When it is stopped and removed from the tap, the drain valve released from the water pressure opens, draining the accumulated water in the water purifier and preventing sanitary problems.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described mainly with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5 and 6. The water purifier has its inlet joint 3 connected via a hose to a supply source of pressurized water to be purified, such as a water faucet, so that discharge water from a drain joint 53 and a drain valve (not shown) can be discharged to sewage. If you treat like this, the installation will be completed. Then, the lever 29 is set to the clockwise rotation position shown in FIG. 5, and the preparation for use is completed. Therefore, when the valve of the faucet is opened to use water, the pressurized water first flows into the deodorizing / bleaching unit B from the inlet joint 3 in order to remove the unpleasant odor and color.

The water to be purified that has risen from the inlet joint 3 to the water passage gap a between the outer case 6 and the inner case 9 flows into the inner case 9 through the inlet hole 9 a on the upper surface of the inner case 9, and the antibacterial activated carbon 10 is removed. While passing and reaching the outlet hole 9b on the bottom surface of the inner case 9, odors and pigments are adsorbed and removed. At this time, since the outlet hole 9b, the valve opening 30 of the valve body 21 and the valve opening 24 of the valve seat 20 are in communication with each other, the deodorized and decolorized water passes through the hose 50 and the filtration unit through the communication hole 52. Flow into C.

The deodorized / decolorized water that has flowed into the water passage gap b between the outer case 12 and the inner case 15 in the sealed state from the communication hole 52 rises in the water passage gap b, and is discharged from the open upper end of the inner case 15 to the case. It is pushed inside. Then, the solid impurities are removed when passing through the innumerable micropores scattered on the peripheral wall of the tubular thread film constituting the thread film assembly filter medium 13. The purified water, which has been completely purified, collects from the end of each tubular thread membrane in the recess 12e of the base portion 12A of the outer case 12, flows out from the communication hole 48 to the outside of the filtration unit C, and passes through the hose 45. It flows into the flow path switching valve A. At this time, the valve port 23 of the valve seat 20 that is connected to the end of the bose 45 is communicated with the valve port 22 through the communication port 31. Therefore, the purified water that has reached the valve port 23 flows out through the hose 41 and the outlet joint 4 from the tip of the purification outlet pipe 5, and is used.

If the filter medium of the filtration unit C gradually becomes clogged due to continuous use of the water purifier and water from the purified water discharge pipe 5 becomes poor, turn the lever 29 counterclockwise as shown in FIG. When moved to the cleaning position, the valve opening 30 of the valve body 21 is in communication with the valve opening 23 of the valve seat 20, and the valve openings 24 and 25 of the valve seat are connected by the communication port 32. Therefore, when the valve of the water faucet is opened, the water that has passed through the deodorizing / decolorizing unit B as described above passes through the valve port 23, the hose 45, and the communication hole 48 provided in the base portion 12A of the filtration unit C. It flows into the depression 12e. Then, when the water is pushed into the tube from the lower end opening of each tubular thread film that constitutes the thread film assembly filter medium 16 and passes through the innumerable micro holes to the outside of the tube, the micro holes are clogged. Solid impurities are pushed away and eliminated. The washing water that has reached the upper end opening of the inner case 15 with the removed solid impurities descends the water passage gap b between the outer case 12 and the inner case 15 and then passes through the communication hole 52 of the base portion 12A. After exiting, it is discharged from the drain joint 53 toward the sewage through the hose 50, the valve port 24, and the valve port 25.

After a certain period of time has passed, the valve is closed to terminate the washing operation, and the lever 29 is returned to the water purification operation position shown in FIG. 5 again. You can continue to use the vessel. When the adsorbent cartridge 7 and the filter cartridge 13 each having a different service life reach their service life, the upper case 2 is removed and the outer case 6 or 12 is attached to the base portion. You can easily and quickly replace each cartridge with a new one simply by unscrewing it from 6A or 12A.

In the above structure, the object of the present invention can be achieved even if the detailed structure of the flow path switching valve A is changed appropriately. For example, as long as the valve seat 20 and the valve body 21 are provided with flat sliding contact surfaces that are in sliding contact with each other, the outer shape, the positions and the number of the communication ports and the communication ports, the communication state between the communication ports, etc. are deodorized. -It may be appropriately changed depending on the form of the decoloring unit and the filtration unit and the installation state thereof.

[0020]

[Effect of device]

 As is clear from the above description, the water purifier according to the present invention has a relatively simple structure and a compact outer shape of the flow path switching valve used to reverse the flow of the water to be purified to clear the clogging of the filter medium layer. In addition to being compact, the number of parts is small and the durability is excellent, so it is possible to provide a product with a more compact outer shape than before, at a lower cost. Also, due to the structure of each independent deodorization / decolorization unit and filtration unit, it is possible to easily and quickly replace the adsorbent (deodorization / decolorization agent) and the filter medium, which have different endurance periods, respectively. .

[Outer 1]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view for explaining the overall configuration of the above.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a deodorizing / decolorizing unit and a perspective view of a flow path switching valve.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the flow path switching valve of the above.

FIG. 5 is a plan view for explaining the action of the flow path switching valve when the water purification operation is performed.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view explaining the action of the flow path switching valve when the filter medium washing operation is performed.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the upper case and the lower case in a broken manner.

FIG. 8 is a partially broken bottom view showing the lower case by breaking it.

[Explanation of symbols] A flow path switching valve B deodorization / decolorization unit C filtration unit a, b water passage gap 1 lower case 2 upper case 3 inlet joint 4 outlet joint 5 purified water outlet pipe 6 furnace material case 6A base portion 6B cover portion 6c Communication hole 6d Holding member 6e Fitting collar 7 Adsorbent cartridge 8 O-ring 9 Inner case 9a Entrance hole 9b Outlet hole 10 Antibacterial activated carbon 12 Outer case 12A Base portion 12B Cover portion 12c Holding member 12d Fitting flange 12e Recessed filter cartridge 15 Inner case 16 Fiber membrane assembly filter medium 20 Valve seats 20a, 21a Sliding contact surface 20b Shaft hole 21 Valve body 22-25 Valve mouth 26 Guide groove 28 Center shaft 29 Lever (rotating member) 30 Valve mouth 31, 32 Communication port 37 Stopper 40, 42, 44, 46, 49, 51 Hose coupling 41, 45, 0 hoses 43 and 47 communication passage 48 and 52 communication hole 53 drainage fittings 11,14,17,27,33～36 O-ring

Claims (4)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A so-called backwash mechanism for removing solid matter adhering to the filter medium by reversing the flow direction of water passing through the filter layer by an attached flow path switching valve when the filter medium becomes clogged. The flow path switching valve A includes planar slide contact surfaces 20a and 21a that are in sliding contact with each other, and the valve seat 20 is rotatable about a central axis 28 by a predetermined angle. And a valve body 21 and a plurality of valve openings 22 provided around the central axis of the valve seat 20.
25, and a valve opening 3 provided in the valve body 21 and communicated with a specific valve opening provided in the valve seat 20 depending on the rotation direction.
0, and the communication ports 31 and 32 for communicating a specific plurality of valve openings among the plurality of valve openings provided in the valve seat 20 depending on the rotation direction, and the valve body 21 is rotated by a predetermined angle. A water purifier comprising a rotating member 29. 2. The sliding state of communication with the valve ports 22 to 25 provided on the valve seat 20 is provided around the valve port 30 provided on the valve body 21 and the communication ports 31 and 32, respectively. Face 20
The water purifier according to claim 1, wherein O-rings 33 to 35 for keeping watertightness are provided at a and 21a. 3. A deodorizing / decolorizing unit B in which an adsorbent cartridge 7 for decolorizing / deodorizing is housed in an outer case 6, and a filtering unit C in which a filter material cartridge 13 for filtering solid impurities is housed in an outer case 12 are provided together. The water purifier according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that. 4. The water purifier according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each of the outer cases 6 and 12 is configured to be vertically separable into two parts at a lower portion thereof.