JPH0751136Y2 - Hot water circulation type bathtub device equipped with cleaning means - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a hot water circulating bath apparatus equipped with heating means for filtering hot water with a filter and maintaining the hot water temperature at a constant value, and more particularly to a washing means for a filtration tank. The present invention relates to a hot water circulation type bath device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A hot water circulating bath device has been developed which continuously and cleanly filters hot water in a bath and maintains it at a constant temperature. This hot water circulation bath device is provided with a heating means for keeping the temperature of the hot water constant and a filtration tank for filtering the hot water. The heating means keeps the temperature of the hot water at a constant temperature, and the filtration tank continuously filters the hot water to remove foreign matters such as dust and keep it clean. Therefore, this hot water circulation type bathtub device can be bathed for 24 hours at any time without exchanging the hot water in the bathtub every day, which is extremely convenient and saves water.

The device of this structure cannot be used by merely physically filtering hot water with a filter. The filter cannot be used for many months without changing bath water unless it removes ammonia (sweat) and bacteria from the human body. When hot water is physically filtered with a filter, the hot water becomes cloudy and cannot be bathed within a few days. Filter to remove the foreign matter contained in the hot water, it is necessary to prevent bacterial growth.

A porous granular filter medium has been developed as a filter for achieving this. This granular filter medium has the functions of removing fine foreign substances and inhibiting the growth of bacteria contained in warm water. As the porous granular filter medium, for example, "barley stone" or natural stone crushed and sintered into a porous state is used. Porous granular filter media have the effect of filtering warm water in a very clever way and keeping it clear. That is, ammonia (sweat) emitted from the human body
In addition, it has the function of adsorbing protein (dust) and filtering it and simultaneously sterilizing hot water. The porous granular filter medium adsorbs ammonia and proteins contained in warm water according to the following conditions.

The porous granular filter medium in which warm water is circulated provides a comfortable temperature environment for the growth of microorganisms, and the microorganisms parasitize there. Microorganisms decompose by eating ammonia and protein contained in warm water as food. Therefore, sweat and dirt in the warm water are effectively adsorbed by the microorganisms on the porous granular filter medium.

By the way, in the following experiment conducted by the present inventor, the warm water filtered using barley stone had a small number of bacteria and had a low turbidity and maintained a clear state. [Experimental conditions] Warm water in the bath ...... 200 liters Granular filter media ………… Bourne stone Bourne stone ………… Average particle size 1-3 cm Total weight 10 kg Bathing period …… 2 months Total number of bathers ……… 200 people [Measurement result] General bacteria count ………… 20 cells / ml (The standard value of the Ministry of Health and Welfare Ordinance No. 56 is 100 or less) Turbidity ……………… 0.4 degrees (Ministry of Health and Welfare Ordinance 56 The standard value of No. 2 or less) was extremely clear warm water.

For comparison, when ordinary non-porous gravel stone was used for the granular filter medium, the number of general bacteria increased to 80 / ml after bathing 35 people in 10 days.
In addition, the turbidity was 3 degrees as a result of measuring the warm water of the home bath which was not filtered by the filter.

As shown by the results of this measurement, the porous granular filter medium exhibits extremely excellent filtering and sterilizing ability, is as hygienic as hot water exchanged every day, and is
It has the feature of being able to make clear warm water.

[0009]

The porous granular filter medium for clarifying warm water in this state has an ability to keep the warm water clear for a long period of time. However, as it is used for a long period of time, foreign matters are accumulated between the granular filter media. The porous granular filter medium can be disposable and can be replaced with a new one after a certain period of time. However, the granular filter materials of porous, since fining and filtering the hot filtration principle of German Patent, when replacing the granular filter materials into new, there is a disadvantage that the hot water becomes clouded over several days to several weeks after exchange. In addition, since the granular filter medium itself is expensive, the reality is that the water tank is actually cleaned for a certain period of time.

In order to wash the granular filter medium filled in the filtration tank, the casing is disassembled, the granular filter medium is taken out, washed, dried in the sun and stored again in the casing. For this reason, it takes a lot of time and effort to wash the granular filter medium, and only a specialized maintenance company can actually wash it.

After washing the porous granular filter medium,
Just like replacing a new one, warm water becomes cloudy for a few days to a few weeks and cannot be clarified. Therefore, after washing the granular filter medium,
For a few days to a few weeks, you have to bathe in cloudy warm water. To make matters worse, if you wait until the warm water is clear before you take a bath, the warm water will become cloudy longer.

The inventor of the present invention has conducted experiments to eliminate cloudiness after washing the granular filter medium. As a result, the porous granular filter medium has succeeded in eliminating the cloudy state all at once with an extremely simple mechanism from the operating principle of separating ammonia and protein. It was clarified that the reason why the washed porous granular filter medium cannot cleanly filter the warm water after the washing is due to the death of the microorganisms living in the numerous voids by the washing. Unlike ordinary filters that physically filter foreign matter, porous granular filter media use microorganisms to keep warm water clear, so if the microorganisms that live in the granular filter media die, they lose their filtering ability. There is. When the granular filter medium is purified and dried in the sun, dirt on the granular filter medium can be removed, but microorganisms inhabiting the granular filter medium are also killed. Therefore, hot water cannot be filtered clearly until they propagate.

Further, after washing the porous granular filter medium, unless it is bathed in warm turbid water, the bait of microorganisms such as sweat and dirt is not contained in the warm water, and the growth of microorganisms is delayed and the warm water becomes clear. Will be late. The inventor is responsible for killing microorganisms.
First, remove the foreign matter adhering to the granular filter media and clean it after cleaning.
For the purpose of eliminating the turbidity of warm water,
A backwashing device was developed (Actual Kaihei 1-128808
News). This device allows bath water to flow backwards through the filtration tank.
Te, Nodea also removing foreign matter deposited between the granular filter materials
It

The device for backwashing the granular filter material in the filtration tank is
After washing, the bath water does not become cloudy. However, this
When used for a long time, the granular filter medium keeps warm water clear
There is a drawback in that the action of doing so decreases. By backwash
Can only remove foreign matter that accumulates on specific parts of the granular filter media.
The reason is that Foreign matter not removed by backwash
Are deposited on the surface of the granular filter medium to close the gap. Granular filter
When the gap between the materials is closed, bath water can pass through this area.
Disappear. Oxygen is supplied to the part where hot water cannot pass.
First, the activity of microorganisms that are aerobic bacteria is significantly reduced
The clarification action is reduced.

This drawback is due to the particles filling the filtration tank.
The filter medium is forcibly stirred, stirred, and washed to remove the solution.
It can be erased. Granules that are forcibly stirred inside the filtration tank
The filter media are rubbed against each other to remove foreign matter from the surface.
Be done. However, the granular filter material filled in the filtration tank is smooth.
It is difficult to stir the mixture, and the whole is stirred gently and evenly.
It is difficult to stir. Heavy minerals such as natural stone for granular filter media
This is because the material is used. In addition, granular filter such as natural stone
The material has a property that the surface does not slip easily, but this property also
It makes it difficult to stir the material.

The present invention was developed for the purpose of eliminating foreign matter adhering to the granular filter medium and eliminating the cloudiness of warm water after washing, without killing the bacteria inhabiting the porous granular filter medium. is there. Another object of the present invention is to provide a hot water circulating bath device which can easily and easily and quickly eliminate clogging of the granular filter medium.

[0017]

A hot water circulating bath apparatus provided with a cleaning means of the present invention comprises a circulation pump 2, a filtration tank 3, a heating means 4, a temperature sensor 5, and a cleaning means 6.
And have the following configurations.

The filtration tank 3 is connected to the bath 1 via a circulation pipe 7 so that the hot water in the bath 1 is circulated therein. In addition, the filtration tank 3 is filled with a porous granular filter material 8 so that the hot water passing therethrough is filtered and kept clear. In the granular filter medium 8, microorganisms propagate there, and the microorganisms decompose and remove ammonia and proteins contained in the warm water and keep them clear.

The circulation pump 2 is connected to the bath tank 1 and the filtration tank 3 to supply the hot water to the filtration tank 3 so as to supply the hot water that has passed through the filtration tank 3 to the bath tank 1 in the normal filtration process. ing.

The heating means 4 is arranged in a passage of hot water circulated by the filtration tank 3 and the circulation pump 2 to heat the hot water to a constant temperature. The temperature sensor 5 detects the temperature of hot water and controls the heating means 4.

The cleaning means 6 comprises a spiral coil 6A and a drive member 6B for rotating the spiral coil 6A. The spiral coil 6A is rotatably arranged in the filtration tank 3 with the center of the spiral as a rotation axis. Spiral coil 6
A is rotated and the granular filter medium 8 is stirred while moving in the axial direction of the spiral coil 6A. In the granular filter medium 8 which is agitated in this state, foreign substances adhering to the surface are removed, and foreign substances deposited in the filtration tank 3 are removed.

[0022]

The hot water circulating bath apparatus having the cleaning means of the present invention is used in the following conditions. The hot water circulation type bathtub device is
The hot water in the bath is filtered finely and kept at a constant temperature. In order to realize this, the circulation pump 2 is
The hot water in the bath is forcedly circulated in the filtration tank 3. The warm water circulated in the filtration tank 3 is clarified by the porous granular filter material 8 and is returned to the bath 1. The hot water circulated in the filtration tank 3 is kept at a constant temperature by the heating means 4 controlled by the temperature sensor 5. For this reason, the hot water circulation type bathtub device has the feature that it can be bathed in clean hot water without changing the hot water in the bathtub every day.

The filtration tank 3 filters hot water. Microorganisms inhabit the porous granular filter medium 8 filled in the filtration tank 3. Microorganisms decompose dirt (ammonia and proteins emitted from the human body) contained in warm water and remove it from warm water. Microorganisms inhabiting the granular filter medium 8 breed on the dirt contained in the warm water as a bait to clarify the warm water. Therefore, when the hot water does not contain any dirt, the microorganisms do not propagate. However, when the hot water circulating bath device is used to remove dirt from the human body, the microorganisms propagate by this and the granular filter medium 8 is filtered. Ability is improved. Since the microorganisms inhabiting the porous granular filter medium 8 multiply more when there is a large amount of bait, the filtering capacity of the granular filter medium is automatically adjusted by the amount of ammonia or protein, that is, the amount of dust contained in the warm water. . However, when the filtering capacity of the granular filter medium is exceeded, warm water becomes cloudy.

On the granular filter material 8, foreign substances are accumulated as hot water is filtered. The accumulated foreign matter increases the hot water passage resistance of the filtration tank 3 and reduces the hot water circulation amount . Filtration tank 3 heated transmittance is lowered, to recover the washed Then filtering capacity. The cleaning means 6 forcibly agitates the porous granular filter medium 8 to remove the accumulated foreign matter. Cleaning means 6
Stirs the granular filter medium 8 with the spiral coil 6A,
Remove foreign substances adhering to the surface. In the porous granular filter medium 8 from which the foreign matters deposited in this state are removed, the adhered substances are scraped off while being immersed in water. At this time, the microorganisms living in the minute voids of the granular filter medium remain in the granular filter medium 8. Therefore, in the step of washing the granular filter medium, the accumulated foreign matter is selected from the microorganisms and washed away.

[0025]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the embodiments shown below exemplify a hot water circulation type bathtub apparatus for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and the hot water circulation type bathtub apparatus is made of materials, shapes, structures and arrangements of components. Is not specified in the structure below. The hot water circulating bath device is modified in various ways within the scope of the claims for utility model registration.

Further, in this specification, the numbers corresponding to the members shown in the embodiments are referred to as "utility model registration request column" and "problem solving problem" so that the claims of utility model registration can be easily understood. It is added to the members shown in the column of "means for carrying out" and the "column of action". However, the members described in the scope of claims for utility model registration are by no means limited to the members shown in the examples.

The hot water circulation type bath apparatus having the cleaning means shown in FIG. 1 includes a bath 1, a circulation pump 2 and a filtration tank 3.
The heating means 4, the temperature sensor 5, and the cleaning means 6 are provided.

The circulation pump 2 circulates the hot water in the bath 1 to the filtration tank 3. The suction side of the circulation pump 2 is connected to the bath 1 through the filtration tank 3, the circulation pipe 7 and the primary filter 9.
Of the circulation pump 2 is connected to the upper portion of the bath 1 via the circulation pipe 7.

The primary filter 9 removes foreign matters such as hair contained in warm water. This is detachably attached to the open end of the suction side circulation pipe 7 in the bath. As the filter material of the primary filter 9, for example, synthetic resin foam having open cells, water resistant filter paper, non-woven fabric, net material, etc. can be used, for example, one having a mesh size of about 0.3 to 5 mm can be used. .

The filtration tank 3 has a two-stage filtration tank 3 having the same internal structure except that it has a built-in heater and is connected in series to improve the filtration capacity. The cross-sectional shape of the filtration tank 3 is shown in FIG. The filtration tank 3 is provided with a slender tubular casing 10 and a porous granular filter medium 8 arranged in the casing 10.

Although not shown, the outer surface of the casing 10 is heat-insulated with a heat insulating material. The casing 10 is closed at its upper end by a lid 11 that can be opened and closed so that the granular filter medium 8 can be filled from above. The lid 11 seals the upper end of the inner cylinder in a watertight manner with the lid 11 fixed. An air vent valve 12 is connected to the lid 11, and the air vent valve 12 holds the air and discharges the air accumulated in the upper part of the inner cylinder to the outside.

The casing 10 has an inlet and an outlet for hot water opened at the upper and lower portions. The warm water moves inside the casing 10 from top to bottom or from bottom to top. When the hot water moves from the bottom to the top, the lower side becomes the inflow port and the upper side becomes the outflow port.

A porous granular filter medium 8 is filled in a casing 10. The warm water that has flowed in from above is flowed down to be filtered by the porous granular filter material 8. On the contrary, the warm water flowing into the lower side of the casing 10 passes through the granular filter medium from the bottom to the top and is filtered clearly.

As the granular filter medium 8, porous natural stone, for example, "barite stone" or the like can be used so that microorganisms can inhabit therein by allowing warm water to permeate. Further, as the granular filter material 8, it is also possible to use a natural one that is not used as it is, but is a porous one obtained by crushing the natural stone and sintering it into a predetermined outer shape.

In the two-stage connected filtration tank 3 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a heater which is a heating means 4 and a temperature sensor 5 are arranged in the hot water passage of one of the filtration tanks 3. The temperature sensor 5 is arranged closer to the bath than the heater so that the hot water temperature before passing through the heater can be measured.
The heater controls the temperature sensor 5 to heat the circulating hot water to a constant temperature.

In the hot water circulating bath apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the heating means 4 is a heater, which is built in the filtration tank 3. This structure does not require a casing for heating means,
It has a feature that the structure is simple. However, this device does not specify the heating means as a heater. Further, the heating means does not necessarily have to be built in the filtration tank 3. For heating means,
A boiler connected to the hot water passage can also be used. The boiler includes a heat exchanger and an oil burner that heats hot water through the heat exchanger.

In the oil burner of the boiler, the ignition and fire extinguishing states are controlled by the temperature sensor so that the hot water temperature is maintained at the set temperature. The temperature sensor 5 is arranged in the first-stage filtration tank 3 so as to detect a temperature as close as possible to the hot water in the bath 1. The temperature sensor 5 detects the temperature of hot water in the filtration tank 3.

Cleaning means 6 is fixed to the casing of the filtration tank 3. The cleaning means 6 includes a spiral coil 6A and a drive member 6B. The spiral coil 6A is made by processing a thin wire into a spiral shape, and its upper end is fixed to the rotation shaft of the reduction motor, which is the drive member 6B. When the spiral coil 6A is rotated, the tip of the spiral coil 6A is granular.
It is processed so that it enters the inside of the. When the spiral coil 6A processed in this direction is rotated, the spiral coil 6A stirs the granular filter medium 8 in a state of scraping the granular filter medium 8 at a portion in contact with the granular filter medium 8. That is, the granular filter material 8 is stirred in the direction shown by the chain line in FIG. The granular filter medium 8 stirred in this direction is
It has a feature that it can be thoroughly cleaned by being stirred in a convection state in the filtration tank 3.

Further, the spiral coil 6 processed in this state
A has a feature that it can efficiently stir the granular filter medium 8 and can rotate smoothly with a light torque, and that no excessive force acts on the spiral coil 6A.

In the step of washing the granular filter medium 8 by the washing means 6, dirty water is generated in the casing. Granular filter media 8
This is because the foreign matter separated from is floating in water. Sewage must be drained outside the casing. When the circulation pump 2 is operated while the granular filter material 8 is being washed, the filtration tank 3
The sewage generated in 1 flows into the bathtub 1. Therefore, in the cleaning step, as shown by the chain line in FIG. 1, the drain hose 16 is connected to the tip of the circulation pipe 7 on the discharge side connected to the bath. The drain hose 16 drains the warm water supplied from the circulation pipe 7 to the bath tub 1 to the outside of the bath tub without flowing into the bath tub 1.

When the granular filter medium 8 in the filtration tank 3 is washed in this state, the granular filter medium 8 can be washed without changing the flow state of hot water. Therefore, the granular filter medium 8 can be washed simply by connecting the drain hose 16 to the tip of the circulation pipe and driving the spiral coil 6A of the washing means 6.

However, as shown in FIG. 1, a drain valve 17 may be connected to the discharge side of the circulation pump 2 to drain the waste water in the filtration tank 3. One of the drain valves 17 is the bathtub 1
The other end is connected to the drain pipe 19, and the circulation pump 2
The discharge side is switched to either the bathtub 1 or the drain pipe 19. The device provided with the drain valve 17 switches the drain valve 17 to the drain pipe 19 to wash the filtration tank 3.

In the step of washing the granular filter medium 8, it is possible to flow water in the filtration tank 3 in reverse. When the porous granular filter medium 8 is agitated in the backwashed state, the granular filter medium can be more effectively washed. FIG. 3 shows a hot-water circulating bath device that achieves this. In the hot water circulation type bath device shown in this figure, a drain pipe 19 is connected to a circulation pipe 7 on the suction side connecting the filtration tank 3 and the bath 1 via a drain valve 18 . A three-way valve 20 is also connected between the circulation pump 2 and the filtration tank 3, and a water supply pipe 21 is connected.

In this device, the drain valve and the three- way valve are set to the solid line positions in the normal hot water filtration process. In this state, the hot water flows from the bath 1 to the drain valve 18 to the filtration tank 3 to the three-way valve 20.
→ Circulation pump 2 → Circulate with bath 1.

In the step of washing the granular filter medium 8 in the filtration tank 3, the drain valve 18 and the three- way valve 20 are switched to the chain line position and the granular filter medium 8 is agitated by the spiral coil 6A. In this state, the water is drained through the water supply pipe 21, the three-way valve 20, the filtration tank 3, the drain valve 18, and the drain pipe 19.
A water pipe is used as the water supply pipe 21.

Although not shown, a water supply pipe and a drain pipe are connected to the filtration tank via an opening / closing valve, and in the washing process of the granular filter medium in the filtration tank, the opening / closing valve is opened and the operation of the circulation pump is stopped. It is also possible to wash.

[0047]

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION The cleaning means provided in the hot water circulating bath apparatus of the present invention can forcibly stir the porous granular filter medium to remove the accumulated foreign matter. The cleaning means removes foreign matter adhering to the surface by agitating the granular filter medium while moving the granular filter medium in a certain direction with a spiral coil. In the porous granular filter medium from which the foreign matters deposited in this state are removed, the deposits are shaken off while being immersed in water. At this time, the microorganisms living in the fine voids of the granular filter medium remain in the granular filter medium. Therefore, in the step of washing the granular filter medium, the accumulated foreign matter is selected from the microorganisms and washed away. Therefore, even in the step of washing the granular filter medium, the microorganisms that play an important role in keeping the warm water clear are kept in a living state.
Therefore, even after washing the granular filter medium, the ability to filter the warm water clearly does not decrease, and the phenomenon that the warm water becomes cloudy immediately after washing the granular filter medium can be eliminated.

Further, in the hot water circulating bath apparatus, since the granular filter medium is washed and the warm water does not become cloudy, the hot water can be frequently washed to keep the warm water clear. In addition, the granular filter medium can be easily and easily washed without removing it from the filtration tank. Therefore, wash the granular filter media before it becomes clogged,
As it can be washed with a little foreign matter attached, it can be washed away before foreign matter is firmly attached, and kept in a clean state.
Achieves ideal characteristics that can always be kept in excellent filtration capacity. Therefore, the hot water circulating bath device of the present invention can realize the feature that it can be bathed in clear warm water every day for 365 consecutive days a year.

A hot water circulation type bath apparatus equipped with the cleaning means of the present invention stirs a granular filter medium with a spiral coil formed by spirally processing a wire rod, and the spiral coil is rotatable around the center of the spiral as a rotation axis. It is installed in the filtration tank. The spiral coil rotated in this state can stir the granular filter medium while moving in the axial direction of the spiral coil. For this reason, the granular filter medium in the filtration tank is not only in the vicinity of the spiral coil, but also the whole is convected, and a wider range is stirred, and the foreign matter that adheres is forcibly removed. is there.

Furthermore, the spiral coil has a feature that it can smoothly rotate inside the granular filter medium with a light rotation torque.
This is because the thin wire rod is inserted into the gap between the granular filter media, and the spiral coil is inserted so that the granular filter media moves relatively. For this reason, the hot water circulating bath apparatus provided with the cleaning means of the present invention has an advantage that the granular filter medium can be cleaned very efficiently and the whole can be cleaned cleanly to keep the warm water clear.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a hot water circulation bath device showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a filtration tank.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a hot water circulating bath device showing an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Bath 2 ... Circulation pump 3 ... Filtration tank 4 ... Heating means 5 ... Temperature sensor 6 ... Washing means 6A ... Spiral coil 6B ...
Drive member 7 ... Circulation pipe 8 ... Granular filter medium 9 ... Primary filter 10 ... Casing 11 ... Lid 12 ... Air vent valve 16 ... Drain hose 17 ... Drain valve 18 ... Drain valve 19 ... Drain Pipe 20 …… 3-way valve 21 …… Water supply pipe

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A filter filled with a porous granular filter material (8).
The over tank (3) and the circulation pump (2) are connected in series.
A hot water circuit is formed on the suction side of the hot water circuit.
The discharge side is connected to the bath (1), and
Heating means (4) for heating the bath water to a constant temperature in the circuit
There is also a drain valve (1
7) is connected and the filtration tank (3) has a cleaning hand.
In hot water circulation type bathtub equipment provided with steps (6)
And the cleaning means (6) is a spiral coil formed by spirally processing a wire rod.
(6A) and drive for rotating this spiral coil (6A)
And a member (6B), and the spiral coil (6A),
Filtration tank (3) that can rotate freely around the center of the helix
The driving member (6B) is arranged inside the spiral coil.
(6A) rotates and the rotating spiral coil (6A) is granular
Do not move the filter material (8) in the axial direction of the spiral coil (6A).
Granular filter media by stirrer and stirrer
(8) It is constructed so that the foreign matter adhering to the surface is removed.
Hot water circulation type equipped with cleaning means characterized by
Bathtub equipment.