JPH08254381A - Fluid cooler - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To easily obtain a cooling water at an optimum temperature even in the case of the seasonal temperature change of raw water, the change of water pressure in a city water pipe or the change of length of a pipeline to a heat regenerative agent by displaying the temperature display part of fluid on a flow rate control provided in a cooling pipe arranged in the heat regenerative agent or a flow rate control valve attached to the upstream or downstream side thereof. CONSTITUTION: A cooling pipe is provided in a heat regenerative agent. A flow rate control valve V controlled to increase or decrease the flow rate of fluid is attached to the cooling pipe or to the upstream or downstream side thereof. A flow rate control 66 is provided on the flow rate control valve V. When the flow rate control 66 is manually operated, a valve 64 moves forward or backward together with a moving rod 65 so that the amount of opening of a valve hole 62 can be adjusted. On the surface of the outer wall 67 of a channel switching device 20 to which the flow rate control 66 is attached, a flow rate display part 68 for displaying the change of the discharge flow rate of cold clean water changing in accordance with the manual rotation of the flow rate of control 66 and a temperature indicating part 69 for displaying the discharge temperature of the cold clean water changing in connection with the discharge flow rate of the cold clean water are provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fluid cooler which can be suitably used as a drinking water cooler, a water purifier, an electrolytic water conditioner, a drinking water quencher and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as one form of a fluid cooler using a regenerator as a cooling means, a cooling pipe is disposed in the regenerator, and heat is taken from the fluid flowing inside the cooling pipe by the regenerator. In some cases, the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe is cooled and the fluid can be obtained from the discharge port.

[0003]

In the fluid cooler using the cold storage agent as the cooling means in this way, the discharge temperature of the cold purified water taken out from the discharge port of the fluid cooler can be set by the temperature of the cold storage agent. . However, when such a fluid cooler is used, for example, in a water cooler for drinking, in reality, seasonal temperature changes of raw water supplied to a cooling pipe arranged in a heat storage agent through a water pipe, The discharge temperature of the cooling water changes considerably due to changes in the water pressure and flow rate in the water pipe, the length of the pipe to the cool storage agent, etc., making it difficult for the user to obtain the cooling water of the optimum temperature that he or she desires. It was

In the fluid cooler, when the fluid is taken out intermittently, the cooling pipe and the fluid retained in the cooling pipe are lower than a predetermined temperature during the period when the fluid is not taken out. In a cooled state, for example, when such a fluid cooler is used as a chiller for drinking, there is a problem that the temperature of water at the initial stage of taking out becomes too low and it becomes unsuitable for drinking.

Incidentally, by filling the space between the cooling pipes with a regenerator, and previously activating a cooling drive means such as a Peltier element to solidify the regenerator, it is possible to intermittently take out a large amount of fluid. However, such a fluid cooler has a problem in that the apparent heat capacity of the cooling pipe becomes extremely large, and the above-mentioned problem becomes prominent.

[0006]

According to the present invention, a cooling pipe is arranged in a cold storage agent, and the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe is cooled by removing heat from the fluid by the cold storage agent. In the cooler, a flow rate control valve for increasing or decreasing the flow rate of the fluid is attached to the cooling pipe or the upstream and downstream sides thereof, and a flow rate control knob is provided on the flow rate control valve. The present invention relates to a fluid cooler characterized by displaying a temperature display section that displays a changing fluid temperature.

The present invention also provides a fluid cooler in which a cooling pipe is provided in the regenerator, and heat is taken from the fluid flowing in the regenerator by the regenerator to cool the fluid. A flow control valve for controlling the flow rate of the fluid is attached to the cooling pipe or its upstream and downstream sides, and temperature detection means is provided on the downstream side of the cooling pipe, and the flow control valve is installed based on the detection output of the temperature detection means. The present invention relates to a fluid cooler characterized in that the fluid cooler is operated to control increase / decrease of a discharge flow rate.

In the above structure, the flow control valve may be provided with a valve drive means made of a shape memory alloy, and the valve drive means may also serve as the temperature detection means.

[0009]

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

(Embodiment 1) In this embodiment, a fluid cooler is a water cooler, and a flow control valve provided on a cooling pipe is manually opened and closed to discharge from a discharge port through a cooling pipe in a cold storage agent. This is a case where the flow rate of the cooling water to be cooled is increased or decreased to allow the cooling water of an appropriate temperature to be discharged from the discharge port.

1 to 3, a water cooler A as a fluid cooler according to the present invention is connected to the water discharge side of an under-sink type water purifier D. And such a water cooler A
Is the water spout whose upper end is installed on the top plate 17 of sink B.
Cold purified water cooled to a temperature suitable for drinking can be discharged from 22.

In the lower space of the cabinet K of the sink B of the system kitchen, the water cooler A and the water purifier D are arranged side by side and are placed on the floor plate 10 below the sink S. There is.

In the water cooler A, as shown in FIG. 2, a rectangular box-shaped main body case 11 is partitioned by a partition wall 11a to form a heat exchanger storage space 11b and a control unit storage space 11c.

In the heat exchanger housing space 11b, a heat absorbing heat exchanger 12 joined to a heat absorbing surface 13a of a Peltier element 13 as a cooling driving means described later and a heat radiating surface 13 of the Peltier element 13 are provided.
The heat dissipation case 51 joined to b is stored, and the control unit C is stored in the control unit storage space 11c.

The pipe arrangement around the water cooler A will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Below the sink S, a water supply rising pipe 15 connected to a raw water supply unit 9 such as a water pipe and a hot water supply source are connected. The hot water supply rising pipe 16 has its upper end connected to a hot and cold water mixing tap 18 installed on a top plate 17 of the sink B.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a first raw water hose 19 is branched from the water supply rising pipe 15, and the end portion of the first raw water hose 19 is installed on the top plate 17 of the sink B. It is connected to the raw water inlet 20a of the flow path switching device 20.

As shown in FIG. 2, the flow path switching device 20 has a flow path switching valve 21 inside and a flow path switching lever 21a.
The first raw water hose 19 can be selectively connected to either the spout 22 or the second raw water hose 23 through the switching valve 21 by operating.

As shown in FIG. 2, the end portion of the second raw water hose 23 is connected to the inflow port 24 of the water purifier D, and the outflow port 25 of the water purifier D is connected to the heat absorption heat pipe 26 through the water purification pipe 26. Connected to the upstream side end of the meandering cooling pipe 27 provided in the exchanger 12, the downstream side end of the cooling pipe 27 is connected to the upstream side end of the cold purified water extraction pipe 28 midway, and the cold purified water extraction pipe 28 Is connected to the cold purified water inflow port 29 of the flow path switching device 20. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a drain branch pipe 30 is branched from the lowermost part of the cooling pipe 27. Is connected to a drain main 32 through a drain valve 31 including a solenoid valve and a drain connecting pipe 37.

The heat exchanger 12 for absorbing heat, as shown in FIG.
Cold water pipes 27 are arranged in a rectangular box-shaped heat absorption case 40 over multiple rows.
Are arranged in a meandering shape in the vertical direction, and the case 40 is filled with a cool storage agent 41 (for example, ADEKA THERMO TOP 6 manufactured by Asahi Denka Co., Ltd.).

The heat-absorbing heat exchanger 12 has a Peltier element 13 attached to one side of the heat-absorbing case 40. By applying a DC voltage, the Peltier element 13 absorbs heat from the heat absorbing surface 13a pressed onto the heat absorbing case 40 and radiates the heat from the heat radiating surface 13b on the opposite side.

With this configuration, the Peltier element 13 takes heat to cool the purified water flowing through the cooling pipe 27. However, the use of the regenerator 41 can enhance the cooling efficiency of the cooling pipe 27.

In particular, before the purified water flows through the cooling pipe 27, the Peltier element 13 is operated in advance to cool and solidify the regenerator 41, so that a large amount of purified water exceeding the capacity of the Peltier element 13 can be obtained. Even if it flows, the purified water can be cooled to a predetermined temperature by the latent heat of dissolution of the heat storage agent 41, and if the water cooler A is used intermittently, a small capacity Peltier element 13
However, a large amount of purified water can be cooled to a desired temperature.

Further, as shown in FIG.
In order to increase the heat dissipation efficiency of the
In b, for example, one side of a rectangular box-shaped heat dissipation case 51 made of a material having high thermal conductivity such as aluminum is attached,
The heat dissipation case 51 is filled with a heat storage agent 52 such as paraffin that solidifies and melts at a temperature slightly higher than room temperature.

A cooling fan 54 driven by a cooling motor 53 is provided on the other side surface of the heat dissipation case 51.

As shown in FIG. 2, the control device C includes a temperature sensor S1 for detecting the temperature of the regenerator 41 provided inside the heat exchanger 12 for absorbing heat, a Peltier element 13, a drain valve 31, and a cooling device. It is connected to the motor 53.

With this configuration, the voltage application to the Peltier element 13 can be controlled based on the output from the temperature sensor S1 input to the controller C, and the temperature of the cold storage agent 41 can be maintained at 4 ° C to 8 ° C. it can.

Further, the operation of the water cooler A having the above-mentioned structure will be briefly described. In FIG. 2, the switching valve 21 of the flow path switching device 20 is operated to directly discharge the raw water from the raw water supply section 9 as it is. Discharge from 22 or purify raw water with water purifier D
At a temperature suitable for drinking in the water cooler A (for example, 8 ℃ ~
Cold purified water cooled to 10 ° C. can be discharged from the water discharge port 22.

The water cooler A is used mainly for producing cold purified water for drinking at home, and its use is intermittent. On the side for directly cooling water, the cold storage agent 41 and the Peltier element 13 are used. Since the heat storage agent 52 stores cold heat in the solidified state on the heat radiation side, it is possible to cope with the generation of a large amount of cold purified water.

When the water cooler A is not used, the drain valve 31 is opened and the accumulated water in the cooling pipe 27 is discharged after a lapse of a predetermined time based on the non-use signal in order to prevent freezing. I am trying.

By the way, with only the structure of the water cooler A described above, in actuality, the seasonal temperature change of the raw water supplied to the cooling pipe 27 arranged in the cold storage agent 41 through the water pipe and the water pressure in the water pipe. The discharge temperature of the cold purified water discharged from the water discharge port 22 changes considerably depending on the change of the flow rate, the flow rate, the length of the pipe to the cool storage agent 41, etc. There will be a situation in which it is not possible.

Therefore, in the present invention, in the water cooler A having the above-described structure, the temperature of the cold purified water discharged from the discharge port 22 has a close correlation with the increase / decrease in the discharge flow rate of the cold purified water. Focusing on this, as will be described below, a flow control valve V for increasing / decreasing the flow rate of the fluid flowing through the cooling pipe 27 is attached, and the water outlet 22 is manually operated by the flow control valve V.
Adjust the flow rate of cold purified water discharged from the
By adjusting the discharge temperature of cold purified water, a configuration is added that can generate cold purified water at an appropriate temperature desired by the user.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the flow path switching device 20
A flow rate control valve V capable of increasing and decreasing the discharge flow rate by adjusting the valve opening degree is attached to a downstream side portion of the cold purified water extraction pipe 28 connected to the water discharge port 22 inside.

Although various types of flow control valves V can be considered, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the pipe of the cold purified water extraction pipe 28 is provided inside the flow path switching device 20. A partition 61 is provided in the road, and the partition 61
A valve hole 62 is provided in the valve hole 62, a valve seat 63 is formed on the peripheral portion of one side of the valve hole 62, and a valve body 64 is arranged so as to move forward and backward toward the valve seat 63. The flow control knob 66 attached to one end of the advancing / retreating rod 65 composed of a screw shaft is manually rotated.

With this construction, when the flow control knob 66 is manually operated, the valve body 64 moves forward and backward together with the advancing / retreating rod 65, and the opening amount of the valve hole 62 can be adjusted.
The discharge amount of the cooling water discharged from the device can be adjusted.

When the temperature of the cold purified water discharged from the water discharge port 22 is lower than the predetermined temperature, the flow control valve V is manually operated to increase the valve opening of the flow control valve V.
If you increase the discharge amount of cold purified water from the
It passes through the inside of the cooling pipe 27 in 41 and the cooling pipe 27 of purified water.
The retention time in the inside will be shortened, and the temperature of the cold purified water discharged from the water discharge port 22 will be rapidly raised, so that the cold purified water having the appropriate temperature desired by the user can be obtained.

On the other hand, when the discharge temperature of the cold purified water from the spout 22 is equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature, the flow control valve V is manually operated to reduce the valve opening degree of the flow control valve V so that the water from the water cooler A is discharged. If you reduce the discharge of cold purified water, only a small amount of purified water
Since the staying time in the cooling pipe 27 of the purified water does not pass through the inside of the cooling pipe 27 in 41, the temperature of the discharged cold purified water decreases, and it is possible to obtain cold purified water of an appropriate temperature desired by the user. it can.

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
Outer wall 67 of the flow path switching device 20 to which the flow control knob 66 is attached
The flow rate display section 68 that displays the change in the discharge rate of the cold purified water that is changed by the manual rotation operation of the flow rate control knob 66
And a temperature display unit 69 that displays the discharge temperature of the cold purified water that changes in correlation with the change in the discharge flow rate of the cold purified water.

In this embodiment, in order to make it easier to understand the correlation between the discharge flow rate and the discharge water temperature, the discharge flow rate of the flow rate display section 68 and the temperature display section 69 respectively changes from large → medium → small. The state and the state in which the discharge water temperature changes from high to medium to low are graphically displayed by a band whose width changes in the length direction.

Further, as is apparent from FIG. 4, the flow control valve V is designed so that the valve hole 62 is opened even in the maximum closed position, and a constant discharge water flow can be secured even in the same position. I am trying.

However, a normal on-off valve can be used as the flow control valve V, and in this case, the water discharge can be completely stopped.

In the embodiment described above, the flow control knob 66
Was attached to the surface of the flow path switching device 20 installed on the top plate 17 of the sink B, but the attachment position may be any place as long as it can be manually operated, for example, the cabinet K
In the lower space of the above, a so-called hidden switch attached to the cold purified water extraction pipe 28 can be used.

(Embodiment 2) In this embodiment, while the flow control valve V according to Embodiment 1 is a manually operated type, flow control is performed at the portion of the cold purified water take-out pipe 28 that is on the downstream side of the cold storage agent 41. The present invention is characterized in that the valve V and the temperature detecting means are provided, and the flow rate control valve V is operated based on the detection output of the temperature detecting means to automatically control the increase / decrease of the discharge flow rate of cold purified water.

As shown in FIG. 5, the flow rate control valve V has the upstream end 71 on the side of the cooling pipe 27 and the downstream end 72 on the side of the water discharge port 22 and has a cold purified water extraction pipe corresponding to the outflow side of the cooling pipe 27. Connected in the middle of 28.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, a valve seat 75 having a substantially conical shape is formed on the upstream end surface inside the valve shell 74 formed by enlarging the diameter of the valve internal passage 73. Shell 74
The valve body 76 is inserted in the inside so that it can slide in the axial direction, and the valve shell
A coil spring-shaped biasing body 77 made of a shape memory alloy is interposed between the downstream side inner end surface of 74 and the valve body 76, and the valve body 76 is mounted in the valve closing direction, that is, in the valve seat 75 direction. A bias spring 78 having a coil spring shape is interposed between the upstream inner end surface of the valve shell 74 and the valve body 76 so as to counteract the bias of the biasing body 77.

Further, as shown in FIGS.
Is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape with a minimum passage 79 formed on the central axis, a substantially conical valve face 80 that corresponds to the valve seat 75 is formed at the upstream end, and a plurality of downstream face outer surfaces are formed. Of the biasing spring 78, which is formed by radially projecting the projection 81 of the biasing element 78 around the upstream outer periphery of the valve element 76, makes the downstream end of the bias spring 78 neglected, and urges the downstream end face to stably hold the biasing element 77. A body insertion recess 82 is formed.

In particular, the urging body 77 as the valve driving means is formed of a shape memory alloy in the shape of a coil spring as described above, and also functions as the temperature detecting means. (° C to 10 ° C), the valve body 76 can be pressed against the valve seat 75 against the bias of the bias spring 78, and below the predetermined temperature, the valve body 76 is shortened and biased by the bias spring 78. The shape of the coil spring is memorized, and since it is formed in the coil spring shape, any shape has elasticity according to Hooke's law.

With such a structure, when the cold purified water passing through the flow rate control valve V is at a predetermined temperature or lower, the biasing member 77 is shortened and the bias spring 78 biases the valve seat 75 to open a large amount of purified water. By flowing the hot water and shortening the residence time of the cold purified water in the cooling pipe 77, the temperature of the resulting cold purified water is rapidly raised. On the other hand, if the cold purified water exceeds a predetermined temperature,
The urging body 77 extends to close the valve seat 75 to reduce the flow opening area, reduce the flow rate of purified water to extend the residence time, and cool the discharged cold purified water to lower the temperature of the discharged purified water. Feedback control is performed to hold.

In particular, in the above feedback control, since the energy for control is obtained from the temperature change of the purified water to be controlled, the flow control valve V can be automatically operated to obtain the proper temperature water. Further, when the urging body 77 is formed of a shape memory alloy, the shape is memorized in the urging body 77 and the spring constants of the urging body 77 and the bias spring 78 are initially set, but the structure is simple. The control operation can be precisely adjusted, and the stable control operation can be independently performed.

Since the water cooler A according to this embodiment is constructed as described above, the raw water supply section 9 is operated by operating the switching valve 21 of the flow path switching device 20 as in the case of the first embodiment. The raw water from the water is discharged from the spout 22 as it is, or the raw water is purified by the water purifier D, and the chiller A is suitable for drinking (eg
Cold purified water cooled to ~ 10 ° C can be discharged from the water outlet 22 at any time.

The water cooler A is used intermittently because it is mainly used for producing cold purified water for drinking at home, and the heat storage agent 54 is used on the side for directly cooling water and the heat radiation side on the Peltier element 13 is used on the heat radiation side. Since each of the paraffins 55 stores cold heat in the solidified state, it can correspond to the generation of a large amount of cold purified water, and the cold heat consumed at this time can be compensated by continuing the cooling operation for a certain period after the use is stopped. Therefore, the Peltier device 13 having a small capacity, the small heat exchanger for heat radiation, and the cooling fan 54 are sufficient, and the device can be downsized.

As described above, since the heat storage agent stores cold heat in a solidified state on the side that directly cools water, cold purified water having a temperature lower than a predetermined temperature suitable for drinking flows from the cooling pipe 27 at the initial discharge stage. Although it flows into the control valve V, as described above, when the cold purified water is lower than the predetermined temperature, the flow rate adjusting valve V automatically increases the flow rate to rapidly raise the temperature of the discharged cold purified water. It is possible to bring the temperature of the discharged cold purified water to a predetermined temperature in a short time, and to keep this temperature thereafter.

Although the present invention has been specifically described with reference to the illustrated embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments. For example, the following modified examples are also included in the present invention. Are included in.

(1) In the embodiment, the flow control valve is arranged on the downstream side of the cooling pipe. However, if it is a place where the user can easily inspect it regularly, the flow control valve may be installed on the cooling pipe or on the upstream side of the cooling pipe. It can also be provided.

(2) Although the solidifying temperature of the cold storage agent is 6 ° C., a cold storage agent having another solidifying temperature may be used according to the preference of the user.

(3) The valve driving means of the flow control valve is not limited to the shape memory alloy at all, and other known means can be used.

[0056]

The present invention has the following configurations due to the configurations described above.

(1) In the present invention, in a fluid cooler in which a cooling pipe is provided in the cold storage agent and the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe is cooled by removing heat from the fluid by the cold storage agent. , A flow control valve for increasing or decreasing the flow rate of the fluid is installed on the cooling pipe or on the upstream and downstream sides of the cooling pipe, and a flow control knob is provided on the flow control valve. The temperature display section that displays the temperature of is displayed.

Therefore, the seasonal temperature change of the raw water supplied to the cooling pipe arranged in the heat storage agent through the water pipe, the change in water pressure and flow rate in the water pipe, the length of the pipe to the cold storage agent, etc. Even if there is a change, the user can easily obtain the cooling water of an appropriate temperature that he or she desires by simply manually operating the above-mentioned flow control valve.

(2) In the present invention, a cooling pipe is arranged in the cold storage agent, and the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe is cooled by removing heat from the fluid by the cold storage agent. In addition to mounting a flow control valve on the cooling pipe or upstream and downstream of the cooling pipe to control the flow rate of the fluid, temperature detection means is provided downstream of the cooling pipe, and the flow rate is based on the detection output of the temperature detection means. The control valve is operated to increase / decrease the discharge flow rate.

Therefore, when the purified water passing through the flow rate control valve is below a predetermined temperature, the temperature detecting means detects the temperature and the flow rate control valve is automatically operated based on the detected output, and a large amount of water is discharged. By flowing the purified water and shortening the residence time of the cold purified water in the cooling pipe, it is possible to rapidly raise the temperature of the discharged purified water and discharge the proper temperature water.When the cold purified water exceeds a predetermined temperature, the temperature detection means Detecting the same temperature and automatically operating the flow control valve based on the detected output to reduce the flow rate of cold purified water to extend the residence time and lower the temperature of discharged cold purified water to obtain the appropriate temperature water. be able to.

(3) In particular, when the valve driving means of the flow rate control valve is formed of a shape memory alloy and the valve driving means can also be used as the temperature detecting means, the feedback control is performed. Since the energy of can be obtained from the temperature change of the purified water to be controlled, electrical control can be made unnecessary and inexpensive control can be performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state of installation in a system kitchen when a fluid cooler according to a first embodiment of the present invention is embodied as a water cooler.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual configuration explanatory diagram showing an overall configuration of the water cooler.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a flow rate adjusting knob of a flow rate control valve of the water cooler.

FIG. 4 is a structural explanatory view of the same flow control valve.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual configuration explanatory diagram showing an overall configuration of a water cooler according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional explanatory view (when the valve is closed) of the flow control valve used in the same water cooler.

FIG. 7 is a vertical cross-sectional explanatory view (when the valve is open) of a flow control valve used in the same water cooler.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional explanatory view of the same flow control valve.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A: Water cooler (fluid cooler) V: Flow control valve 13: Peltier element 27: Cooling pipe 41: Cooling agent

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A cooling pipe (27) is disposed in a cold storage agent (41), and the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe (27) is cooled by removing heat from the cooling storage agent (41). In such a fluid cooler, a flow control valve (V) for increasing or decreasing the flow rate of the fluid is attached to the cooling pipe (27) or upstream and downstream thereof, and a flow control knob (66) is attached to the flow control valve (V). A fluid cooler characterized in that a temperature display section (69) for displaying the temperature of the fluid that changes in correlation with the control flow rate of the fluid is provided in the flow control knob (66). 2. A cooling pipe (27) is provided in the cold storage agent (41), and the fluid flowing in the cooling pipe (27) is deprived of heat by the cold storage agent (41) to cool the fluid. In such a fluid cooler, a cooling pipe (27) or a flow control valve (V) for controlling the flow rate of the fluid is installed on the upstream and downstream sides of the cooling pipe (27) and the cooling pipe (27).
A fluid cooler characterized in that temperature detection means is provided on the downstream side of, and the flow rate control valve (V) is operated based on the detection output of the temperature detection means to control the increase / decrease of the discharge flow rate. 3. A fluid cooler according to claim 2, wherein the flow rate control valve (V) comprises a valve driving means made of a shape memory alloy, and the valve driving means also serves as a temperature detecting means.