JPH1024289A - Water purifying device provided with cooler - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water purifying device furnished with a cooler capable of being easily operated and capable of efficiently cooling the purified water and supplying cooled water. SOLUTION: This water purifying device provided with a cooler has a temp. sensor 20 furnished to the raw water passage 33 connecting a faucet 35 and a water purifier 31 and detecting the temp. of raw water, a flow sensor 18 disposed to a purified water passage 36 connecting the water purifier 31 and a three-way valve 4 and detecting the flow rate or amt. of the purified water and a control circuit 50 for switching and controlling the three-way valve 4 based on the flow rate or amt. of the water. The purified water is efficiently cooled, and the cooled water is efficiently supplied by this device.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a water purifier with a water cooler, which controls a water passage by an electric switching valve and supplies cooling water efficiently.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional water purifier with a cooler is disclosed in
As described in JP-A-320777, switching means is interposed between a water purifier and a water storage tank for cooling purified water from the water purifier, and the switching of the switching means causes the purified water to flow directly to the water storage tank. The switching means has been performed manually instead of automatically.

[0003]

Therefore, the above-mentioned water purifier with a cooler cannot perform flexible switching control according to the state of purified water, and cannot supply high-temperature water to a water storage tank which is a water cooler. In this case, the high-temperature water instantaneously mixes with the cooling water of the water cooler, and there is a problem in drinking as cooling water. In addition, in order to make the mixed water appropriate cooling water, it must be cooled again, which takes a long cooling time and is inefficient.

An object of the present invention is to provide a water purifier with a water cooler which is simple in operation, can efficiently cool purified water, and can supply cooling water efficiently.

[0005]

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a water purifier for purifying raw water from a faucet, a switching valve for switching a plurality of water passages through which the purified water flows, In a water purifier with a water cooler having a water cooler that communicates with one of the plurality of water passages and cools the purified water, a temperature that is provided in a raw water passage connecting the faucet and the water purifier and detects a temperature of the raw water. A sensor, a flow sensor that is provided in a purified water passage connecting the water purifier and the switching valve, and detects a flow rate or a water amount of the purified water, and controls switching of the switching valve based on the detected water temperature and the flow rate or the water amount. And a control circuit section that performs

Further, another feature of the present invention is that the switching valve is a three-way valve, and the chiller water passage through which the purified water flows to the chiller, and the chiller does not pass through the chiller. It is to switch between a bypass water passage and a bypass water passage that directly flows to a discharge pipe.

Another feature of the present invention is that the control circuit controls the three-way valve to select the bypass water passage in advance at the start of the initial operation.

Another feature of the present invention is that, at the time of initial operation, when the detected flow rate reaches a predetermined value, the control circuit unit switches the three-way valve to the bypass water passage. Switch to the water cooler water passage from, to supply the purified water to the water cooler, further, if the detected water amount reaches a predetermined value, to stop the supply to the water cooler, again, the It is to switch and control a three-way valve to the bypass-side water passage.

Another feature of the present invention is that, in normal operation, when the detected flow rate reaches a predetermined value and the detected water temperature is lower than a predetermined temperature, Is to switch the three-way valve from the bypass water passage to the water cooler water passage and supply the purified water to the water cooler.

Another feature of the present invention is that, in a normal operation, the detected flow rate reaches the predetermined value and the detected water temperature becomes lower than the predetermined temperature. When it is high, the three-way valve is switched from the water cooler water passage to the bypass water passage, and outputs a temperature abnormality signal.

Another feature of the present invention is that, in normal operation, when the detected flow rate is equal to or less than the predetermined value, the control circuit unit connects the three-way valve to the bypass water passage. To switch.

Another feature of the present invention is that, when the three-way valve is switched based on the detected flow rate, the predetermined value is different in the increasing direction and the decreasing direction of the flow rate.

Further, another feature of the present invention is that, when the three-way valve is switched based on the detected temperature, the predetermined temperature is different between the rising direction and the falling direction of the temperature.

According to the present invention, the temperature sensor is provided in the raw water passage connecting the faucet and the water purifier, and detects the temperature of the raw water. The flow rate sensor is provided in a purified water passage connecting the water purifier and the switching valve, and detects a flow rate or an amount of purified water. The control circuit controls switching of the switching valve based on the detected water temperature and flow rate or water amount.

The switching valve is a three-way valve, and switches between a chiller water passage through which purified purified water flows to the chiller and a bypass passage through which purified water flows directly to the discharge pipe without passing through the chiller.

Thus, flexible switching control according to the state of purified water can be performed, and the purified water can be efficiently cooled and the cooling water can be supplied efficiently.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A water purifier with a water cooler according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an entire configuration of a water passage and a control system of a water purifier with a water cooler according to one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the water purifier 31 includes a raw water switching valve 34 provided at a distal end of a raw water passage 33 having a check valve 32 interposed at a water supply port 31a.
Is connected to the water supply.

The water purifier 31 has an activated carbon filtration layer 31b and a hollow fiber membrane filtration layer 31c filled with specially processed activated carbon, and the raw water supplied from the water supply port 31a is filtered by the activated carbon filtration layer 31b. Then, the water is purified and the mineral components are taken out, and further filtered through the hollow fiber membrane filtration layer 31c and discharged from the discharge port 31d.

The temperature sensor 20 includes a check valve 32 and a water supply port 3.
1a, is installed in the raw water passage 33, and the faucet 35
The temperature of the raw water supplied from is detected, and a signal corresponding to the temperature is output. Purified water channel 3 with flow sensor 18 interposed
6 connects the discharge port 31 d of the water purifier 31 and the water supply port of the three-way valve 4.

The three-way valve 4 is an electrically operated normally open solenoid valve. The three-way valve 4 has one water supply port and two discharge ports. The water supply port is connected to the purified water passage 36, and one of the discharge ports is connected to the water supply port 39 a of the water cooler 39 from the water cooler water passage 38. The other outlet is the outlet 39b of the water cooler 39.
Is connected to a bypass water passage 37 branched from a discharge pipe 40 connected to the discharge pipe 40.

The water cooler 39 is constructed so that its periphery is surrounded by a heat insulating layer, and the discharge port 39b extends to the bottom inside the water cooler 39 with a hollow fiber membrane filtration layer 39c interposed. Also, 39e
Is a deaeration valve for discharging the air in the water cooler 39.

The circulating water passage of the cooling mechanism for cooling the purified water in the water cooler 39 is connected to a Peltier unit 6 through a circulation pump 10 through an outlet 39 d formed in the bottom wall of the water cooler 39.
, And from the Peltier unit 6 to a water cooler water passage 38 via a check valve 41, and a water supply port 3 of a water cooler 39.
9a.

At the bottom of the water cooler 39, a water cooler temperature sensor 2 is provided.
2 is provided, and outputs a signal corresponding to the temperature of the purified water in the water cooler 39. Further, a drainage water passage 43 having a drainage valve 42 interposed is branched between the circulation pump 10 and the Peltier unit 6. The cooling fan 8 cools the radiation fins of the Peltier unit 6 by air.

The control circuit unit 50 includes the power supply 1 connected to the commercial power supply 2 and the controller 12, and the controller 12 operates the mode changeover switch 46 on the operation panel 45.
(Mode selection) and cooling switch 47 (cooling on / off)
Then, a signal is input from the operation of the clear switch 48 (data reset) and the status is displayed on the display panel 44 (including an alarm).

FIG. 2 shows a configuration of the control circuit unit 50 of FIG. The control circuit section includes a power supply 1 and a controller 12. As shown in FIG. 2, the power supply 1 converts an AC voltage supplied from a commercial power supply 2 into a stable DC voltage for driving the entire control circuit. Power circuit 3 and three-way valve 4
And a drive circuit 5, 7, 9, 11 for driving the Peltier 6, the cooling fan 8, and the circulation pump 10. The on / off of these loads is performed by a relay or a semiconductor element.

The controller 12 is mainly composed of a microcomputer 14 (hereinafter abbreviated as a microcomputer), and includes a reset circuit 13 for initializing the microcomputer 14, a clock generation circuit 15 for driving the microcomputer 14, and a display panel 44. A display circuit 16 for displaying a state on
A switch input circuit 17 for inputting information to the microcomputer 14 by a user operating an operation switch on the operation panel 45, and outputs of the flow rate sensor 18, the temperature sensor 20, and the water temperature sensor 22 are detected and input to the microcomputer 14. Detection circuits 19, 21 and 23 for the purpose. And
The controller 12 controls the load based on input conditions from a switch input circuit 17, a flow sensor 18, a temperature sensor 20, and a water cooler temperature sensor 22.

FIG. 6 shows general characteristics representing the relationship between the flow rate and the frequency based on the output signal from the flow rate sensor 18.
An output signal from the flow sensor 18 is detected by a detection circuit 19 and is taken into the microcomputer 14 as an input signal. This input signal is a pulse signal, and can be converted into a frequency by measuring the period of the rising or falling signal. That is, the flow rate is estimated from this frequency.

FIG. 7 shows general characteristics representing the relationship between the amount of water and the number of pulses based on the output signal from the flow sensor 18. The number of pulses of the rising or falling signal of the pulse signal is counted, and the amount of water is estimated from the accumulated number of pulses.

FIG. 8 shows general characteristics representing the relationship between the water temperature and the voltage based on the output signal from the temperature sensor 20. An output signal from the temperature sensor 20 is detected by a detection circuit 21,
It is taken into the microcomputer 14 as an input signal. This input signal is an analog signal (voltage) for estimating the water temperature from the voltage.

In the above configuration, a first embodiment of the control mode of the controller shown in FIG. 1 will now be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of the entire control in the control mode. 4 shows a detailed flowchart of the initial process of FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 shows a detailed flowchart of the automatic channel switching process of FIG.

First, in step 61, the user turns on the power by turning on the power outlet. Next, when the power is turned on, the microcomputer 14 of the controller 12
Initializes the input / output port (62).

Referring to FIG. 4, next, initialization is performed such as initializing the input / output ports of the microcomputer 14 and displaying the status on the display panel 44 by the display circuit 16 to notify the user of the start of the initial operation (71). , The signal from the flow rate sensor 18 is set to the monitoring state.

Next, when the user opens the faucet 35 and tap water is supplied, the flow rate is measured based on the output signal from the flow rate sensor 18 (72). Next, the flow rate is determined (7
3) If the flow rate is not ≧ n1, the flow rate determination is continued. If the flow rate is ≧ n1, the output of the three-way valve 4 is turned on, and the valve that has been connected to the bypass water passage 37 side is replaced by the water cooler water passage 38 side (74). In other words, n1 of the flow rate determination is based on whether the three-way valve 4 is turned on,
This is the OFF determination value.

Next, the amount of water supplied to the water cooler 39 is measured based on the output signal from the flow rate sensor 18 (7).
5). Next, the water amount is determined (76). If the water amount is not ≧ N1, the water amount determination is continued. If the water amount is ≧ N1, that is, if the water amount in the water cooler 39 is full, the output of the three-way valve 4 is turned off. (77) Then, the switching valve is switched so that the purified water flows to the bypass water passage 37 side, and the completion of the initial operation and the transition to the next processing are displayed on the display panel 44 via the display circuit 16. That is, the three-way valve 4
This is an operation in which the three-way valve 4 is turned on only while the required amount of water is being supplied to the water cooler 39, instead of being kept in a constantly energized state.

In the initial processing of step 62 so far, the three-way valve 4 is controlled by the user's operation of the faucet 35 and the input conditions of the flow rate sensor 18 (the initial state is an off state → on / off according to the input conditions of the flow rate and the amount of water). Then, it is an initial operation for supplying purified water purified by the water purifier 31 to the water cooler 39. In the initial process of step 62, the operation of the mode switch 46 and the cooling switch 47 of the operation panel 45 is not accepted, but the operation of the clear switch 48 is accepted.

Returning to FIG. 3, when the initial processing of step 62 is completed, the flow shifts to the normal operation water purification mode (6).
3). This water purification mode is a mode in which the user can supply purified water purified by the water purifier 31 by operating the faucet 35 as drinking water.

Next, the mode changeover switch 46 input is determined (64). When the user selects the mode changeover switch 46 on, the mode is shifted to the cold water mode (65). In the cold water mode, the purified water purified by the user in the water purifier 31 is supplied to the cooler 3.
This is a mode in which purified water cooled by the cooler 39 while being supplied to the cooler 9 can be supplied as drinking water.

When the mode is shifted to the cold water mode, an automatic water channel switching process is performed next (66). In the automatic waterway switching process, first,
The signals from the flow rate sensor 18 and the temperature sensor 20 are set to the monitoring state.

Next, when the user opens the faucet 35 and the raw water flows, the flow moves to FIG. 5 to measure the flow rate and determine the flow rate (81). Next, the flow rate is determined (82). If the flow rate is not equal to or more than n1, the flow rate determination is continued, and if the flow rate is equal to or more than n1, the flow shifts to water temperature measurement (83).

Next, the water temperature is judged (84), and the water temperature <T
In the case of 1, the output of the three-way valve 4 is turned on (85), and the water passage is switched to the water cooler water passage 38 side to flow purified water to the water cooler 39. Then, the display shifts to the temperature abnormality display (88). The temperature abnormality display informs the user that hot water is supplied from the faucet 35, and is displayed on the display panel 44 by the display circuit 16.

Next, the water temperature is judged again (89). If the water temperature is not still <T1, the temperature abnormality display is continued and the water temperature <
When it becomes T1, it shifts to temperature abnormality cancellation (90).
Next, when the process proceeds to the temperature abnormality release, the display of the temperature abnormality display in step 88 is released, and the output of the three-way valve 4 in step 85 is turned on. That is, the three-way valve 4 is controlled so that the high-temperature water is not supplied to the cooler 39 (the three-way valve 4 is turned off during the temperature abnormality display, and the three-way valve is turned on when the temperature abnormality is canceled).
Is what you do.

Next, the flow rate is determined again (86). If the flow rate is not smaller than n1, the flow rate determination is continued. If the flow rate is smaller than n1, that is, if the user closes the faucet 35 and reduces the flow rate, the three-way valve is closed. The output is turned off (87), and the flow returns to step 82 to perform flow rate determination again.

Next, returning to FIG. 3, the input of the mode switch 46 is determined from the automatic channel switching process in step 66 (67), and if the user selects the ON of the mode switch 46, the flow proceeds to the water purification mode in step 63. Transition.

That is, when the user turns on the mode changeover switch 46 and selects the cold water mode, the operation of the faucet 35 and the flow rate sensor 1
The three-way valve 4 can be automatically controlled (the three-way valve 4 is turned off → the three-way valve 4 is turned on and off according to the input conditions of the flow rate and the temperature) based on the input conditions of the temperature sensor 8 and the temperature sensor 20. Thus, since the three-way valve 4 is not always energized, the life of the three-way valve 4 can be prevented from being shortened.

Next, a description will be given of a second embodiment of the control mode of the controller shown in FIG. In the embodiment of the first embodiment described above, the ON / OFF determination value (flow rate n1) of the three-way valve 4 and the determination value (water temperature T1) of the temperature abnormality display and the temperature abnormality cancellation are one value, respectively. There is a possibility that a phenomenon in which the three-way valve 4 repeatedly turns on and off (hereinafter, referred to as chattering) may occur in a short time after the determination value due to fluctuations in the flow rate or the water temperature.

More specifically, if chattering occurs while the user is supplying the cooling water, the cooling water and the purified water are mixed and it becomes difficult to drink the cooling water. In addition, when high-temperature water flows into the water cooler due to chattering, cooling must be performed again, which causes a problem that a long cooling time is required.

In the embodiment of the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, the on / off judgment value of the three-way valve 4 is changed to the flow rate n2 when the flow rate is increased from the stoppage to the flow-through state. Judgment value,
In addition, when the flow rate is reduced in the direction from the water flow to the water stop state, the chattering described above can be prevented by setting the flow rate n3 separately from the determination value.

Similarly, as shown in FIG. 10, when the temperature of the purified water is increased, the temperature of the water T2 is determined. In this case, chattering can be prevented by setting the water temperature T3 separately from the determination value.

In the above-described first and second embodiments, the water purifier with the water cooler uses the three-way valve having one water supply port and two discharge ports. When an alkaline ionized water device is provided in addition to the water cooler, by using a four-way valve having one water supply port and three discharge ports,
The same control as when a three-way valve is used can be performed.

Further, when the number of water equipment is increased, a multi-way valve instead of the four-way valve and a controller corresponding to the multi-way valve are used. Switching control can be performed.

[0051]

According to the present invention, the operation is simple and the cooling and cooling water can be drunk efficiently. In addition, since the switching valve does not need to be constantly energized, the life of the water purifier with a water cooler can be prevented from being shortened by using the switching valve.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a water passage and a control system of a water purifier with a water cooler according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed block diagram of a control circuit unit of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the entire control in a first embodiment of the control mode of the controller in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a detailed flowchart of an initial process of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a detailed flowchart of the automatic waterway switching process of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a flow rate-frequency characteristic diagram of the flow sensor in the first embodiment of the control mode of the controller of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a water amount-pulse number characteristic diagram of the flow sensor in the first embodiment of the control mode of the controller of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a water temperature-output voltage characteristic diagram of the temperature sensor in the first embodiment of the control mode of the controller of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a flow rate-frequency characteristic diagram of a flow sensor in a second embodiment of the control mode of the controller in FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a water temperature-output voltage characteristic diagram of a temperature sensor in a second embodiment of the control mode of the controller of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Power supply, 4 ... Three-way valve, 6 ... Peltier unit, 8 ... Cooling fan, 10 ... Circulation pump, 12 ... Controller, 1
4 ... microcomputer, 18 ... flow sensor, 20 ...
Temperature sensor, 22 ... Cooler temperature sensor, 31 ... Water purifier,
31a ... water supply port, 31b ... activated carbon filtration layer, 31c ... hollow fiber membrane filtration layer, 31d ... discharge port, 33 ... raw water passage, 34
… Raw water switching valve, 35… faucet, 36… purified water channel, 37…
Bypass water passage, 38 ... water cooler water passage, 39 ... water cooler,
39a ... water supply port, 39b ... discharge port, 39c ... hollow fiber membrane filtration layer, 39d ... outlet, 40 ... discharge pipe, 42 ... drain valve, 43 ... drain water passage, 44 ... display panel, 45 ... operation panel, 46 ... mode changeover switch, 47 ... cooling switch, 48 ... clear switch, 50 ... control circuit section

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Nobumasa Tanaka 1-1-1 Higashitaga-cho, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture Inside the Electrification Equipment Division of Hitachi, Ltd. No. 1-1, Tachitaga Technology Co., Ltd.

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A water purifier for purifying raw water from a faucet, a switching valve for switching a plurality of water passages through which the purified water flows, and a chilled water communicating with one of the plurality of water passages to cool the purified water. In a water purifier with a water cooler having a water purifier, provided in a raw water passage connecting the faucet and the water purifier, a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the raw water, and a purified water passage connecting the water purifier and the switching valve. A water purifier with a water cooler, comprising: a flow sensor provided for detecting a flow rate or a water amount of the purified water; and a control circuit unit for switching and controlling the switching valve based on the detected water temperature and the flow rate or the water amount. . 2. The chiller according to claim 1, wherein the switching valve is a three-way valve, and a chiller water passage through which the purified water flows to the chiller, and a discharge pipe through which the purified water does not pass through the chiller. A water purifier equipped with a water cooler, characterized by switching between a bypass water passage and a water passage. 3. The water cooler according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit controls the three-way valve to select the bypass water passage in advance at the start of the initial operation. With water purifier. 4. The control circuit according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit is configured to connect the three-way valve to the bypass passage when the detected flow rate reaches a predetermined value during an initial operation. Switching from a water channel to the water cooler water passage, supplying the purified water to the water cooler, and further, when the detected water amount reaches a predetermined value, to stop supplying the water to the water cooler, again. A water purifier with a water cooler, wherein the three-way valve is controlled to switch to the bypass-side water passage. 5. The control circuit according to claim 1, wherein, in normal operation, the detected flow rate reaches a predetermined value, and the detected water temperature is lower than a predetermined temperature. In this case, the three-way valve is switched from the bypass water passage to the water cooler water passage, and the purified water is supplied to the water cooler. 6. The control circuit according to claim 1, wherein in the normal operation, the detected flow rate reaches the predetermined value, and the detected water temperature changes to the predetermined temperature. If higher, the three-way valve is switched from the water cooler water passage to the bypass water passage, and a temperature abnormality signal is output, wherein the water purifier with the water cooler is provided. 7. The control circuit according to claim 1, wherein, in normal operation, when the detected flow rate is equal to or less than the predetermined value, the control circuit unit switches the three-way valve to the bypass water passage. A water purifier with a water cooler characterized by switching to 8. The method according to claim 4, wherein when the three-way valve is switched on the basis of the detected flow rate, the predetermined value is different in an increasing direction and a decreasing direction of the flow rate. Water purifier with water cooler. 9. The method according to claim 5, wherein when the three-way valve is switched based on the detected temperature, the predetermined temperature is different in a rising direction and a falling direction of the temperature. Water purifier with water cooler.