JPH08313019A - Humidifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To enable an increased water level to be decreased down to a predetermined value within a short period of time without using any returning pipe by a method wherein a humidifier for atomizing liquid stored in a first liquid tank is arranged in the first liquid tank having a predetermined height and formed with its upper end being opened into a second liquid tank. CONSTITUTION: A space 9 inside an inner wall 8 forms an outer water tank of a humidifying and cold air feeding machine 1, and an inner water tank 11 is arranged at a higher location than a bottom part of the outer water tank 9. Then, a humidifier 12 utilizing an ultrasonic vibrating element is fixed to a center part of the bottom part of the inner water tank 11. A water tank height of the inner water tank 11 has such a size as one in which it has a size (65mm) added with a predetermined value (40mm) to a size (25mm) ranging from a vibrating surface 12a of the ultrasonic vibrating element to the bottoms part of the inner water tank 11. Water in a water supplying tank 15 passes through a pipe 16 connecting the water supplying tank 15 with the inner water tank 11 and then water is supplied to the inner water tank 11 by a water supplying pump 17 driven by an electric motor.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a humidifier, and is suitable for use in a humidifying cooler for a vehicle such as an agricultural machine or a construction machine, which is used on rough terrain.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional humidifier for a humidifying cool air blower, an ultrasonic transducer is arranged as a humidifying device at the bottom of the water tank. Then, a high-frequency voltage is applied to vibrate the ultrasonic transducer to atomize the water in the water tank, and this is blown by a blower. As described above, the humidifying cooler has a simple structure and is small in size, and is therefore used in an open-cabin type vehicle (forklift, for example).

By the way, in order to efficiently operate the ultrasonic vibrator and achieve good atomization, it is necessary to maintain the distance from the vibration surface of the ultrasonic vibrator to the water surface at a predetermined value.
For this reason, the conventional humidifying chiller uses an automatic water supply system that supplies water according to a change in the water level so that the amount of water reduced by humidification is supplied.

[0004]

However, since the ultrasonic vibrator is arranged at a position eccentric from the center of the bottom of the water tank, when the humidifier body is largely tilted, the vibration surface of the ultrasonic vibrator is changed depending on the tilt direction. The distance from the water surface to the water surface fluctuates greatly, and good atomization cannot be achieved. Also, by providing a return pipe, a method of suppressing fluctuations in the distance from the vibration surface of the ultrasonic transducer to the water surface is implemented,
There is a problem that the effect is small depending on the inclination direction.

In view of the above points, an object of the present invention is to provide a humidifier capable of reducing an elevated water level to a predetermined value in a short time without using a return pipe.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention uses the following technical means. In the invention according to claim 1, the first liquid tank (11) for storing a liquid, the second liquid tank (9) for receiving the liquid overflowing from the first liquid tank (11), and the inside of the first liquid tank A humidifying device (12) arranged in (11) for atomizing the liquid stored in the first liquid tank (11), and a liquid supply means (17) for supplying the liquid to the first liquid tank (11). ), The first liquid tank (11) has a predetermined height, and the upper end of the first liquid tank (11) has the second
It is characterized in that it is formed in a shape opened to the liquid tank (9).

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the humidifier according to the first aspect, the humidifying device (12) is arranged so that it is located on the center of the bottom of the first liquid tank (11). It is characterized in that it is arranged in one liquid tank (11). In the invention according to claim 3, in the humidifier according to claim 1 or 2, the liquid supply means (17)) is
It is characterized in that the liquid is controlled to be supplied to the first liquid tank (11) at all times when the humidifying device (12) is operated.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the humidifier according to the first or second aspect, the liquid supply means (1
7) supplies the liquid to the first liquid tank (11) when the liquid level of the liquid stored in the first liquid tank (11) becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined height. It is characterized in that it is controlled to. According to the invention of claim 5,
A blower (7), a casing (9, 13) forming a flow path of air blown by the blower, an air intake port (3) provided at one end of the flow path, and the other end of the flow path. An air outlet (5) provided in the humidifier and the humidifier according to any one of claims 1 to 4, and the liquid atomized by the humidifier (12) is supplied to the flow path (9). , 13) is configured to be supplied to the air in the humidifying cold air blower.

The reference numerals in parentheses of the above-mentioned means indicate the correspondence with the concrete means described in the embodiments described later.

[0010]

According to the invention described in claims 1 to 5, the first liquid tank has a predetermined depth and is formed such that the upper end portion thereof is opened to the second liquid tank. Therefore, all the excessively supplied liquid overflows from the first liquid tank, and the liquid level of the first liquid tank can be lowered to a predetermined value in a very short time. Therefore, the liquid in the first liquid tank can be stably atomized.

Further, since it is not necessary to increase the number of return pipes in order to improve the ability to drain the excessively supplied liquid, the manufacturing cost of the humidifying cooler can be reduced. According to the invention described in claim 2, the humidifying device is the first
Since the first liquid tank is arranged in the first liquid tank so as to be located on the center of the liquid tank bottom, the direction of the first liquid tank is different from that in the first liquid tank bottom portion. Even when tilted, the change in the distance from the humidifying device to the liquid surface becomes small.
Therefore, no matter which direction the first liquid tank is tilted, the liquid in the first liquid tank can be atomized well.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the liquid supply means is controlled so as to always supply the liquid to the first liquid tank when the humidifying device is in operation, so that the first liquid tank is tilted. Even when the liquid in the first liquid tank overflows and the liquid level drops, the liquid level can be raised to a predetermined height in a short time. According to the invention as set forth in claim 4, the liquid supply means stores the liquid in the first liquid tank when the liquid level of the liquid stored in the first liquid tank becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined height. Is controlled so that it is always supplied when the humidifier is operating.
It is possible to save the power of the liquid supply means as compared with the case where the liquid is controlled to be supplied to the first liquid tank.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. (First Embodiment) As shown in FIG. 1, a humidifying cooler 1 according to this embodiment is assembled to a pillar 1b at a rear portion of a driver's seat 1a of a construction machine, and has a blowout port of the humidifying cooler 1 described later. 4,
The cool wind is blown to the operator through the bellows-shaped duct 1c connected to the vehicle 5.

The structure of the humidifying cooler 1 will be described below with reference to FIG. Reference numeral 2 denotes a humidifying cooler casing that forms a case of the humidifying cooler 1. A suction port 3 for taking air into the humidifying cooler casing 2 is provided at a lower side portion of the side surface thereof. Further, on the upper surface, a substream outlet 4 for blowing out the air taken in from the inlet 3 and a cold air outlet 5 for blowing out the cool air cooled by a humidifying device described below are provided. The sidestream outlet 4 and the cold air outlet 5 are independently located concentrically with the sidestream outlet 4 facing outward. And this secondary outlet 4
The bellows-shaped duct 1c (two-dot chain line) is connected to the outer edge of the.

A sub-flow passage 6 communicating with the sub-flow outlet 4 is provided inside the humidifying cooler casing 2. The sub-flow passage 6 is provided inside the humidifying cooler casing 2 and inside thereof. It is formed from the inner wall 7. A blower 7 serving as a blower is arranged downstream of the air in the sub-flow passage 6 near the suction port 3. The blower 7 is composed of a blower fan 7a and a blower motor 7b which is a driving means thereof.

A space 9 inside the inner wall 8 forms an outer water tank of the humidifying cooler 1. An air introduction port 10 is provided at an intermediate portion of the sub-flow passage 6 so that the sub-flow passage 6 and the outer water tank 9 are communicated with each other and the air flowing in the sub-flow passage 6 is guided to the outer water tank 9. Further, inside the outer water tank 9, an inner water tank 11 is provided at a position higher than the bottom thereof, and the side wall 11a of the inner water tank 11 is another partition wall (for example, the inner wall 8, the humidifying cooler casing 2, etc.). And is formed independently.

At the center of the bottom of the inner water tank 11, a humidifying device 12 utilizing an ultrasonic vibrator (piezo element) is attached. Then, the water atomized by the humidifying device 12 is supplied into the air introduced from the air introduction port 10, takes the heat of the air and vaporizes to lower the temperature of the air. Then, the cooled air is communicated with the cold air outlet 5 provided right above the inner water tank 11 by the inner cylinder 13
And is blown out from the cold air outlet 5.

By the way, in the humidifying device 12, when a high frequency voltage is applied to the ultrasonic vibrator, the ultrasonic vibrator vibrates, and this vibration is used to atomize water. Therefore, in order to achieve good atomization, it is necessary to keep the distance from the vibration surface 12a of the ultrasonic transducer to the water surface within a predetermined value (35 ± 5 mm in this embodiment). Therefore,
The water tank height dimension (H dimension in FIG. 1) of the inner water tank 11 is the above-mentioned predetermined value (this embodiment is 25 mm) from the vibration surface 12a of the ultrasonic transducer to the bottom portion of the inner water tank 11. In the example, 40 mm is added to the dimension (65 m in this example).
m).

A drain port 14 for draining water accumulated in the outer water tank 9 is provided at the bottom of the bottom of the outer water tank 9. The drain port 14 communicates with a water supply tank 15 arranged below the drain port 14, and the drained water is stored in the water supply tank 15. The water in the water supply tank 15 is connected to the pipe 16 that connects the water supply tank 15 and the inner water tank 11.
Through which water is supplied to the inner water tank 11 by a water supply pump 17 driven by an electric motor (not shown).

The humidifying cooler casing 2, the inner wall 7,
The inner water tank 11 and the water supply tank 15 are made of a resin having excellent moldability (for example, polypropylene). Next, the operation of the humidifying cooler 1 will be described below. By turning on a switch (not shown) of the humidifying / cooling air blower 1, a blower 7 and a water supply pump 17 are supplied from a battery (not shown).
And electric power is supplied to a high-frequency voltage generating circuit (not shown). Then, the blower 7 starts to operate, and a part of the air sucked from the suction port 3 passes through the side flow passage 6 and is blown out from the side flow outlet 4. Also, other air,
The air is introduced from the air inlet 10 into the space forming the outer water tank 9.

At the same time, the high-frequency voltage generated by the high-frequency voltage generation circuit described above is applied to the ultrasonic vibrator, and the ultrasonic vibrator vibrates to atomize the water in the inner water tank 11. Then, this atomized water is blown by the blower 7 into the outer water tank 9
It is supplied to the air blown inside and takes away the heat of the air to be vaporized. And the air that has been deprived of heat and turned into cold wind,
The air blown out from the cold air outlet 5 is mixed with the air blown out from the sidestream outlet 4 and passed through the bellows-shaped duct 1c.
It is blown to the operator sitting in the operator's seat 1a of the construction machine shown in FIG. The water supply pump 17 continues to supply water to the inner water tank 11 during operation of the humidifying cooler 1.

Next, the effect of this embodiment will be described. The water tank height dimension H of the inner water tank 11 is the vibration surface 12a of the ultrasonic transducer.
Since the size is from the above to the bottom of the inner water tank 11, the above-mentioned predetermined value is added, and any water amount exceeding this overflows from the inner water tank 11. Therefore, the water surface can be lowered to a predetermined value in a very short time. Therefore, the water in the inner water tank 11 can be stably atomized.

Since the humidifying device 12 is attached to the center of the bottom of the inner water tank 11, the humidifying device 12 is attached to the bottom end of the inner water tank 11 even when the inner water tank 11 is inclined. Inner aquarium 11 compared to the existing one
However, no matter which direction it is tilted, the vibrating surface 12a of the ultrasonic transducer
It is possible to reduce the fluctuation of the distance from the water surface to the water surface. Therefore, as compared with a case where the humidifying device 12 is attached to the bottom end of the inner water tank 11,
Good atomization can be achieved.

Further, since the water supply pump 17 continuously supplies water to the inner water tank 11 while the humidifying cooler 1 is in operation,
Even if the humidification cooler 1 tilts and the water in the inner water tank 11 overflows, and the water level drops, the water level can be raised to a predetermined height in a short time. Further, since it is not necessary to increase the number of return pipes in order to improve the ability to drain the water excessively supplied to the inner water tank 11, it is possible to reduce the manufacturing cost of the humidifying cooler 1. (Second Embodiment) In the second embodiment, the water supply tank 15 and the water supply pump 17 which are arranged outside the humidifying cool air blower casing 2 in the first embodiment are arranged in the humidifying cool air blower casing 2. This is a miniaturization.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the water overflowing from the inner water tank 11 flows through the space 9a and collects in the space 9b obliquely below the inner water tank 11. This space 9b
It corresponds to the outer water tank 9 in the first embodiment. However, unlike the outer water tank 9 of the first embodiment, this space 9b is not provided with the drain port 14 communicating with the water supply tank 15, and water is stored in this space 9b. Then, the water stored in the space 9b is supplied to the inner water tank 1 by the water supply pump 17.
Water is supplied to 1.

Further, the water supply tank 15 is a detachable separate body, and is arranged inside the humidifying cooler casing 2 on the side of the inner water tank 11. Also, this water tank 1
5 is arranged above the space 9b, and the water tank 1
5, a water supply port 15a is provided in the lower part of the space 5, and the space 9b
It is open inside. The water level in the space 9b is kept constant as described below.

When the water level drops below the water supply port 15a, air flows into the water supply tank 15 through the water supply port 15a,
The water in the water supply tank 15 is supplied to the space 9b. When the water level becomes the same as the water supply port 15a, air does not flow into the water supply tank 15 from the water supply port 15a,
The own weight of the water in the water supply tank 15 and the atmospheric pressure in the space 9b balance each other, and the water supply to the space 9b is stopped. Therefore, the water level in the space 9b can be kept constant.

Further, since the water supply tank 15 is detachably attached, it is possible to take out only the water supply tank 15 and easily supply water to the water supply tank 15. (Third Embodiment) In the first and second embodiments, the water supply pump 17 is always operated to supply water to the inner water tank 11, but in the present embodiment, water is supplied when the water level drops. It was done.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, when the water level sensor 18 is arranged in the inner water tank 11, when the water level becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined height (in this embodiment, the h dimension is 55 mm). The water supply pump 17 is operated to supply water to the inner water tank 11. As described above, since the water supply pump 17 operates when the water level becomes equal to or lower than the predetermined height, it is possible to reduce the power consumption as compared with the case where the water supply pump 17 is always operated.

The water level sensor is a vibrating surface 12 of the ultrasonic transducer.
It is best to arrange the water level sensor 18 at the central portion where the variation in the distance from a to the water surface is small. However, in the present embodiment, in consideration of the assemblability of the water level sensor 18 to the inner water tank 11, one is arranged at the peripheral portion of the inner water tank 11 to the extent that there is no practical problem. A plurality of water level sensors 18 may be arranged around the inner water tank 11 to improve the water level detection accuracy.

The humidifying cooler according to the present invention is not limited to a vehicle, but can be applied to a small portable humidifying cooler used outdoors such as camping. Further, the water supply tank 15 is arranged at a position higher than the inner water tank 11, and as described in the second embodiment, the weight of water and the atmospheric pressure applied to the inner water tank 11 are used to maintain a constant water level inside. The present invention can be implemented by supplying water to the water tank 11.

Further, by arranging the water supply tank 15 at a position higher than the inner water tank 11, and opening the valve of the pipe to the water supply tank 15 or the inner water tank 11, the inner water tank 11 is always supplied with water by its own weight. Can also implement the present invention. Further, the humidifying cool air blower according to the present invention may be used as a humidifier for the purpose of merely humidifying, not for supplying cold air.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a view showing a state in which a humidifying cool air blower according to the present invention is assembled to a construction machine.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a first embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a second embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state in which a water level sensor is assembled in an inner water tank of the humidifying cool air blower according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 ... Humidifying cooler casing, 3 ... Intake port, 4 ... Substream outlet, 5 ... Cold air outlet, 6 ... Substream passage, 7 ... Blower, 8 ...
Inner wall, 9 ... Outer water tank (second liquid tank), 10 ... Air inlet, 11 ... Inner water tank (first liquid tank), 12 ... Humidifier,
13 ... Inner cylinder, 14 ... Drain port, 15 ... Water tank, 16
… Piping, 17… Water pump, 18… Water level sensor.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A first liquid tank for storing a liquid, a second liquid tank for receiving a liquid overflowing from the first liquid tank, and a second liquid tank arranged in the first liquid tank and stored in the first liquid tank. A humidifying device for atomizing a liquid, and a liquid supply means for supplying the liquid to the first liquid tank, the first liquid tank having a predetermined height, and an upper end portion thereof being the second A humidifier, which is formed in a shape opened to a liquid tank. 2. The humidifier according to claim 1, wherein the humidifier is arranged in the first liquid tank so as to be located on the center of the bottom of the first liquid tank. 3. The humidifying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the liquid supply unit is controlled to supply the liquid to the first liquid tank at all times when the humidifying device is activated. vessel. 4. The liquid supply means stores the liquid in the first liquid tank when the liquid level of the liquid stored in the first liquid tank becomes equal to or lower than a predetermined height. Humidifier according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is controlled to supply. 5. A blower, a casing forming a flow path of air blown by the blower, an air intake port provided at one end of the flow path, and an air blower provided at the other end of the flow path. An outlet and the humidifier according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is configured to supply the liquid atomized by the humidifier to the air in the flow path. A characteristic humidifying cool air blower.