JPH09257307A - Automatic bath boiler - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a bather from being displeased by water circulation by a pump by a method wherein water supply is prohibited in a normal state during hot keeping operation, and is permitted when the set temperature is lowered. SOLUTION: When a hot-keeping mode instruction issued from a remote controller, a water supply flag fa is set at 0 to indicate the prohibited state. Therefore, automatic water supply is prohibited in principal during hot-keeping mode (60). When an instruction to lower the set temperature Ts is output (61), the water supply flag fa is set at 1 to indicate the permitted state (62), and enters a standby state until a hot-keeping timer, that controls intervals during hot-keeping mode, runs out (63). When the hot-keeping timer runs out, a water supply routine takes place (65). The water supply routine starts after it is confirmed that the water supply flag fa is set at the permitted state. When the water supply routine comes to end, the water supply flag fa returns to 0 of the prohibited state and the hot-keeping timer is reset.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of an automatic bathtub device having an automatic heat retaining function of heating or pouring water so that the bath water temperature is kept at a set temperature at regular intervals.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The bath water temperature is detected at regular intervals set by a heat retention timer, and when the detected temperature is lower than the set temperature, additional heating is performed to raise the temperature to the set temperature, and the detected temperature is higher than the set temperature. In some cases, an automatic bath heater device having an automatic heat retaining function of injecting water to lower the temperature to a set temperature is well known.

[0003]

However, even in the automatic heat retention mode, the current bath water temperature is temporarily set to 1
Even if the gathering mode instructing to raise the temperature by −2 ° C. is commanded and the bather's favorite temperature is reached, the automatic heat retention function may be executed and automatic water injection may be performed after a certain period of time by the heat retention timer.

[0004] Such automatic water injection gives a human body an uncomfortable feeling while taking a bath, and it is necessary for the automatic bath device to remove the operation causing the unpleasant feeling.

Further, when the automatic heat retention function is executed at regular intervals, a temperature sensor provided in the circulation circuit while operating the pump in the circulation circuit connecting the bathtub and the bathtub to circulate the hot water in the bathtub. The temperature is detected at. However,
Normally, the pipes that make up the circulation circuit are often installed outdoors, in which case the cold hot water or water in the pipes exposed to the outside is circulated in the bath tub, which also causes discomfort to the human body while bathing. May be given.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an automatic bathtub device which does not give a bather an unpleasant feeling due to the above-described pouring of water or the hoop circulation in the bathtub hot water temperature detecting step.

[0007]

According to the present invention, the above-mentioned object is to provide an automatic heat-retaining function of detecting the bath water temperature at regular intervals set by a heat-retention timer and heating or pouring water to a set temperature. This is achieved by providing an automatic bathtub device having a feature that the water pouring is prohibited in a normal state during heat retention and the water pouring is permitted when the set temperature is lowered.

This apparatus is further characterized in that a water injection permission state is set when the automatic heat retention function is executed after the set temperature is lowered, and then the water injection prohibition state is set again after the automatic heat insulation function is executed.

With such a configuration, in principle, automatic water injection is prohibited during the heat retention mode, and when the bather actively lowers the set temperature, the automatic water injection is permitted when the heat retention timer times out. become. Therefore, no water will be poured against the will of the bather.

Further, according to the present invention, the above object is to provide an automatic bath heater device having an automatic heat retaining function of detecting the bath water temperature at regular intervals set by a heat retention timer and heating or pouring water to a set temperature. In (1), the automatic bath is characterized by prohibiting water pouring in the normal state while keeping warm, allowing water pouring when a slimy mode is ordered to order to lower the current bath water temperature, and then again prohibiting water pouring after pouring water. This is accomplished by providing a kettle device.

With such a configuration, in principle, automatic water injection is prohibited during the heat retention mode, and when the bather actively commands the mode for lowering the current hot water temperature, water injection at that time is permitted, and thereafter, By returning to the automatic water injection prohibition state as in principle, it is possible to avoid water being injected against the bather's will when the automatic heat retention function is executed thereafter.

According to the present invention, even in the above-mentioned water injection permission state, the water injection prohibition state is set when the gathering mode instructing to raise the current bathtub hot water temperature is instructed.

By doing so, even if the automatic pouring is permitted when the set temperature is lowered or when the slimming mode is commanded, the subsequent automatic pouring is prohibited when the bather subsequently commands the gathering mode. can do. As a result, it is possible to perform control in accordance with the instruction from the bather immediately before.

Further, according to the present invention, while a person is bathing in the bath, the drive of the circulation pump for measuring the temperature is kept on standby even after the elapse of the predetermined time. By operating the circulation pump, it is possible to prevent the cold water in the pipe from being supplied into the bathtub.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the overall structure of an automatic bath heater according to an embodiment of the present invention. Automatic bath kettle 100
1, a bath combustion chamber 1 and a hot water supply combustion chamber 2 are provided. Each combustion chamber is provided with a bath heat exchanger 10 and a hot water supply heat exchanger 20. Further, in the combustion chamber, there are a bath burner 11 and a hot water supply burner 21 as heat quantity input means.
(Three ports are provided in FIG. 1.), bath igniter 13, hot water supply igniter 23, bath frame rod 14
A hot water supply frame rod 24 is provided. Further, a common combustion fan 30 is provided for both combustion chambers 1 and 2, and the air burned in each is exhausted through an exhaust port.

A bath solenoid valve 12 and a hot water supply solenoid valve 22 for controlling on / off of gas supply to the bath burner 11 and the hot water supply burner 21 are provided, and a proportional valve 31 common to these solenoid valves 12 and 22, A source gas solenoid valve 32 is provided. The solenoid valve, the proportional valve, the igniter, the frame rod, the combustion fan, and various sensors are controlled by a control device 43 such as a microcomputer mounted on the electrical board 41. The control device 43 is connected to a remote controller 40 in a bathroom or a kitchen, receives an operation signal according to a program stored in a memory, and outputs a control signal.

Although not shown, the remote controller 40 is provided with various control switches such as an automatic heat retention mode switch, a temperature setting switch, a lukewarm mode switch, and an gather mode switch, and the control in the control device 43 is performed based on an instruction from these switches. Control is performed according to the program.

The outline of the operation on the water heater side is as follows. First, when the hot-water tap is opened, the water quantity sensor 25 senses the flow rate of the hot-water supply 28, and after the pre-purge by the combustion fan 30, the original gas solenoid valve 32, the proportional valve 31, and the hot-water supply solenoid valve 22 are opened together with the discharge of the hot-water igniter 23. Then, hot water of a predetermined temperature is supplied from the hot water supply port 29. In order to keep the hot water supply temperature at the set temperature, the water input thermistor 26 and the hot water thermistor 27
The solenoid valve drive current of the proportional valve 31 is controlled to a value calculated from the output of the water amount sensor 25 and the output of the water amount sensor 25.

On the other hand, on the bath side, the source gas solenoid valve 32, the proportional valve 31, and the bath solenoid valve 12 are opened to burn the bath burner 11, and the circulation pump 17 causes the forward pipe 18, the return pipe 19, and the circulation fitting 46. The reheating operation is performed while circulating the hot water in the bathtub 47 that is connected via the. In the storage mode operation or the automatic hot water operation, the hot water obtained by the combustion on the hot water supply side is supplied to the circulation circuit on the bath side by opening the pouring solenoid valve 34, and the set amount of hot water is supplied at the set temperature. Is performed in a bathtub, and then, if necessary, a reburning operation is performed to a set temperature by burning the bath side. The check valve 35 is for preventing water in the bathtub from flowing into the pouring side.

In the circulation circuit on the bath side, a pressure sensor 45 for detecting the water level in the bath 47, a bath water flow switch 15 for detecting whether water is circulating in the circulation circuit, and a circulation circuit in the circulation circuit. A bath thermistor 16 and the like for detecting the temperature of is provided.

In the water injection routine, the circulating water is circulated by the circulation pump 17 to detect the bath water temperature and supply the required amount of water from the water heater side. The temperature is measured by the bath thermistor 16, and the water amount is controlled by the water amount sensor 25.

[Command for lowering the set temperature] FIG. 2 is a flow chart when the set temperature Ts is lowered. In the present embodiment, the water injection flag fa is set in the control program and the water injection flag fa holds whether the automatic water injection is currently in the prohibition state or the permission state. Even if the water injection routine is started, if the water injection flag fa is in the prohibited state, automatic water injection is not performed.

Returning to FIG. 2, when the heat retention mode command is issued from the remote controller in step 60, the water injection flag fa is set to 0 which is a prohibited state. Therefore, in principle, automatic water injection is prohibited during the heat retention mode. The reason for this is that if water is automatically poured even if it is not requested, it will cause discomfort to the bather.Therefore, allow water only when the bather actively issues a command with water injection. This is because

When a command to lower the set temperature Ts is issued from the remote controller (step 61), the water entering flag is set to 1 in the permit state (step 62), and waits until the heat retention timer for managing the interval in the heat retention mode expires. To do. And when the time comes up (Step 6
3) Enter the water injection routine. In the water injection routine, water is injected after confirming that the water entry flag fa is in the permitted state, as described later. When the water injection routine ends, the water input flag fa is returned to 0, which is the prohibited state, and the heat retention timer is reset. The above steps are repeated until the heat retention mode ends (step 66).

FIG. 3 is a flow chart for explaining the above water injection routine. This water injection routine is used for control after the time-up of the heat retention mode. First, the circulation pump 17 is driven to detect the current hot water temperature Tc of the bathtub (step 80). Then, the current temperature Tc and the set temperature Ts are compared (step 81). Bath water temperature T
If c is lower than the set temperature Ts, the above-described additional heating is continuously ended until the set temperature is reached (steps 88, 8).
9).

On the other hand, when the bathtub hot water temperature Tc is higher than the set temperature Ts, the water injection flag fa is checked to see if there is a command to lower the temperature from the remote controller. If it is 1, the series of automatic water injection steps shown in step 83 is executed. In the heat retention mode, water injection is normally prohibited, so if there is no command from the remote controller to lower the temperature, the process ends without water injection. Water injection flag fa is 1 in the permitted state
At this time, as shown in step 81, the pressure sensor 45 detects the pressure in the bathtub to calculate the water amount Q1, and starts water injection and counts the water injection amount. At the same time, the water injection temperature Tin is detected to calculate the water injection amount Q0 required to reach the set temperature Ts, and unless the set temperature Ts is changed on the way, the water injection is continued until the water injection amount QT reaches the required water injection amount Q0. If the set temperature Ts is changed on the way, the water injection is stopped and the process is restarted from the beginning.

Therefore, the set temperature T is forcibly set from the remote controller.
At the time-up immediately after the command for lowering s is issued, reheating or pouring is performed according to the hot water temperature Tc at that time, but in the normal state where there is no command for lowering the set temperature Ts, the hot water temperature Tc Only when is lower than the set temperature Ts. Therefore, it is possible to avoid automatic water injection when the time is up, which is not based on a command from the remote controller, and does not give a bather an unpleasant feeling.

[Command for slimming mode] In the case of the automatic bath heater, a command from the remote controller is used to forcibly lower the temperature by a predetermined temperature from the current temperature, or it is set after the bath is kept at a temperature lower than the preset temperature. The mode of raising the temperature is widely used. These are generically defined as a slimming mode in this specification. This slimming mode is a mode that requires immediate water injection in response to a command from the remote controller. Therefore, in the present embodiment,
When this slimming mode is commanded from the remote control,
The water injection flag fa is set to 1 in the permitted state so that the automatic water injection routine shown in FIG. 3 is started.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart when there is a command for the slimming mode. First, in step 70, when the heat retention mode switch is turned on, the water injection flag fa is set to 0, which is a prohibited state.
Is the same as above. Next, when there is a command for the slimming mode during the interval (step 71), as shown in step 72, first, the water injection flag fa is set to 1 in the permission state, and the set temperature Ts is reset to a predetermined temperature ΔT lower, Enter the water injection routine. The water injection routine is as described in FIG. When the set temperature Ts is lowered and the bath water temperature Tc at that time is higher than the set temperature Ts, water injection is performed. After the completion of the water injection routine, the water injection flag fa is returned to the prohibition state 0 again to return to the normal state.

After the heat retention timer has timed out, it is the same as in the case of FIG. In this example, since the water injection flag fa is 0, which is the prohibition state, no water is injected in the water injection routine of step 75.

[Command for Atsume Mode] The automatic bath heater device is provided with a function for an atsume mode for forcibly raising the temperature of the hot water by a predetermined temperature in response to a command from the remote controller. This function is used, for example, when it is desired to raise the temperature by 1 to 2 ° C. while taking a bath. In that case, the bather requires a hot water temperature higher than the current hot water temperature, and it is not preferable that the automatic water injection is performed at the time up immediately after that. Therefore, in the present embodiment, when the command for the gather mode is issued, even if the set temperature is lowered or the command for the slimy mode is issued before that, the pouring of water is permitted. The flag is set back to the prohibited state. By doing so, the hot water temperature can be controlled in accordance with the instruction from the immediately preceding bather.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the water injection flag fa
When the command for the gathering mode is issued when 1 is in the permitting state, additional heating (not shown) is forcibly performed to raise the hot water temperature and then set the pouring flag fa to 0, which is the prohibiting state. As a result, even if some water injection routine is started after the additional heating in the gather mode is completed, the automatic water injection is not performed because the water injection flag fa is 0 in the prohibited state. Of course, when the instruction for the slimming mode is issued after the additional heating of the gathering mode is finished, the water injection flag fa is set to the permitting state 1 again, so that the subsequent water injection is permitted.

[During Bathing] Further, in order to prevent the human body from feeling uncomfortable during bathing, in the present embodiment, the pressure sensor 45 detects whether or not the user is bathing, and while the bathing is in progress, a command to inject water is supplied from the remote controller. If there is not, the operation of the circulation pump for temperature measurement is waited in the water injection routine after the time is up.

When a command for the slimming mode or a command for the gathering mode is issued, water injection or reheating is preferentially performed immediately after the command, and during that time, the water injection routine itself after the time is up is on standby. . However, in other cases, if the heat retention timer times out, the flow of the water injection routine shown in FIG. 3 starts. In that case, when the bath is in progress, the circulation pump for the first temperature measurement of the water injection routine is not operated until the bath is finished. By doing so, it is possible to prevent the cold water in the pipe due to the operation of the circulation pump from being supplied to the bathtub. However, when the command to lower the set temperature Ts is issued immediately before and the water injection flag is 1 in the permitted state, the water injection flow is started even during the water entry.

Specifically, step 64 in FIG. 2 and FIG.
If the water entry flag fa is 0 in the prohibited state after the time is up and the user is taking a bath as shown in step 74 in (4), the system waits in that state.

FIG. 5 is a table showing an example of temperature detection control immediately after the time is up. Since the status of the water injection flag fa is changed by the command for lowering the set temperature Ts and the command for the slimming mode, these cases are shown separately in the chart. As shown in FIG. 5, when the bath is not in progress (the bath flag fb is 0), the temperature measuring step after the time-up is allowed as it is. In addition, when the bath is in the bath (the bath flag fb is 1), the temperature measuring process after the time is up is in the standby state except when the set temperature Ts is lowered and the water injection flag fa is 1 in the permitted state. However, when the slimming mode command is issued, the processing for the slimming mode is performed with priority over the processing after the time is up, the water injection flag fa is returned to the prohibited state 0, and the processing is returned to after the time is up. Therefore, in that case, the temperature measurement after the time-up during bathing is allowed only when the water injection flag fa is in the water injection permission state 1 by lowering the set temperature.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, the automatic water-filling action for the regular heat retention in the heat retention mode is permitted only when the remote control side actively issues a command, and otherwise normal operation is performed. Is not allowed in the case of. Therefore, the bather does not feel uncomfortable. Further, it is possible to prevent the heat retention timer from being timed out immediately after the command of the gathering mode to automatically inject water. Furthermore, during bathing, the drive of the circulation pump for temperature measurement is also on standby. Therefore,
Since the water injection and the circulation pump are driven based on the command immediately before the bather, no discomfort is given.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart when the set temperature is lowered.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a water injection routine.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart when a slimming mode is set.

FIG. 5 is a chart showing a control example of temperature measurement after time is up.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100 Automatic Bath Kettle Device 16 Bath Thermistor 17 Circulation Pump 40 Remote Controller 43 Control Device 45 Pressure Sensor fa Water Injection Flag

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Eiji Usui, 3-4 Fukamidai, Yamato City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Gaster Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor, Kazuyuki Iizumi, 3-4, Fukamidai, Yamato City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An automatic bathtub device having an automatic warming function of detecting the bathtub hot water temperature at regular intervals set by a warming timer and heating or pouring water to a set temperature, prohibiting water pouring in a normal state during warming. The automatic bath heater device is characterized in that when the set temperature is lowered, water injection is permitted. 2. The automatic bath heater according to claim 1, wherein a water injection permission state is set when the automatic heat retention function is executed after the set temperature is lowered, and a water injection prohibition state is set again after the automatic heat insulation function is executed. It is characterized by 3. An automatic bathtub device having an automatic warming function of detecting the bathtub hot water temperature at regular intervals set by a warming timer and heating or pouring water to a set temperature, prohibiting water pouring in a normal state during warming. The automatic bathtub device is characterized in that when the slimming mode is commanded to lower the current bathtub temperature, the pouring is permitted and the pouring is prohibited again after the pouring. 4. The automatic bathtub device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the water pouring prohibition state is set when an atsume mode for instructing to raise the current bathtub hot water temperature is instructed during heat retention. 5. The automatic bathtub device according to claim 1, wherein the automatic heat retention function drives a circulation pump provided in a circulation circuit that connects the bathtub and the bathtub. It has a function of detecting the temperature of hot water in the bath and comparing the detected bath water temperature with the set temperature to perform heating or pouring, and while the person is bathing in the bath, when the predetermined time has elapsed. However, it is characterized by waiting for the temperature measurement.