JPH1172246A - Humidifying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To operate a humidifying device without noise by a method wherein water is supplied to an ion air inducing means and the flow passage of ion air or a humidifying element having water absorbing property. SOLUTION: In a humidifying device, an ion air inducing means 2 is installed below a space 10 between a suction port 13 and a filter 4. A tank, filled with water, is mounted on a main body 1 and an opening and closing valve is opened whereby water is supplied to a humidifying element in a humidifying block 5. When a ventilating device 3 is operated under this condition, air, passed through the suction port 13 and the filter 4, is discharged into a room from an air outlet port 16 through a humidifying block 5. In this case, moisture, retained in the humidifying element, is evaporated and humidifying is effected. When the ion air inducing means 2 is operated, ion air flows whereby the evaporation of moisture from the humidifying element, retaining moisture, is promoted by the flow of ion air. The ion air inducing means 2 is operated without generating sound whereby the same means 2 can be used in a bed room optimally at night.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a humidifier, and more particularly to a humidifier of a vaporization type.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a humidifying device, there are an ultrasonic type in which water is atomized and released by ultrasonic waves, a heating type in which water is heated and boiled off, and a humidifying element which vaporizes moisture on the surface of a humidifying element by blowing air. A vaporization type (natural evaporation type) is provided. The ultrasonic method and the heating method have a relatively small size and can provide a large amount of humidification.However, the ultrasonic method has a problem in terms of hygiene because impurities in water are released into the air together with water. doing. The heating method has problems such as an increase in electricity cost due to large power consumption.

[0003] On the other hand, since the vaporization method utilizes spontaneous evaporation, no impurities are released into the air and excessive humidity does not occur. Less power is required. Furthermore, it can function as an air purifier by combination with an air purifying filter.

[0004]

However, in the conventional humidifier of the vaporization method, the noise of the blower fan is large, and there is a problem in nighttime operation in the bedroom. The present invention has been made in view of such a point, and an object of the present invention is to provide a humidifier capable of performing operation without noise.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an ion wind inducing means for inducing an ion wind, a water absorbing humidifying element installed in or near a flow path of the ion wind, and a humidifying element. And a water supply unit for supplying water. The vaporization of the moisture from the humidifying element holding the moisture by the ionic wind induced by the ionic wind inducing means is promoted.

[0006] If an air blower with a fan is also provided, it is possible to respond to an increase in the amount of water vaporized. In addition, a humidifying element is provided in the air blow path of the blower and near the ion air flow path. In this case, it is not necessary to separately provide a humidifying element in both the blowing path of the blowing device and the ion wind induced by the ion wind inducing means.

Further, if the suction side flow path of the air blower crosses the ion air flow path, and if a humidifying element is provided in the discharge side flow path of the air blower, the ion wind inducing means having the discharge section can be provided. Safety can be increased because the humidifying element can be separated. An air cleaning filter may be provided in each of a flow path of the ion wind by the ion wind inducing means and a blowing path by the blower. It can have a function as an air purifier.

If a humidity sensor and a control unit for controlling the operation of the blower and the ion wind inducing means according to the humidity detected by the humidity sensor are provided, the appropriate humidity is always maintained. be able to. Further, if a valve for shutting off water supply from the water supply unit to the humidifying element is provided, the humidifying operation when the humidity is high can be stopped. This valve may also serve as a valve provided in a tank that is a water supply unit.

[0009] The apparatus may be provided with a negative ion supply section for adding negative ions to the ion wind. In addition to providing a bypass path that does not pass through the humidifying element in the ion air flow path and the flow path of the blower, a switching means for switching between the flow path that passes through the humidifying element and the bypass flow path may be provided, or the humidifying element may be provided with an ion air flow path and It may be possible to move out of the flow path of the blower. It can respond to the case where only ventilation is required and humidification is not required.

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described. The humidifying device shown in the illustrated example has a function as an air purifier, and a front cover 11 is provided at a large opening front opening 13. A filter 4 is provided on the rear side of the body 1 which is detachably attached,
On the rear side of the filter 4, a centrifugal fan 30 for blowing air is provided.
And a motor 31 for driving the fan 30 are provided. A humidifying block 5 and a water tank 6 are provided above the fan 30, and the wind from the fan 30 is discharged to the outside through the humidifying block 5 and an outlet 16 opened on the upper surface of the main body 1. Is done.

The filter 4 through which the air entering the main body 1 passes through the suction port 13 when the fan 30 is driven preferably includes a pre-filter for removing coarse dust and a filter for removing dust and deodorizing. In particular, those having a function of removing NOx or inactivating viruses by attaching a drug or adding an antibacterial agent can be suitably used.

Below the space 10 between the suction port 13 and the filter 4, an ion wind inducing means 2 is provided. The ion wind inducing means 2 which is detachably disposed by removing the front cover 11 is configured as a discharge electrode block in which a discharge wire and a counter electrode plate are disposed in an electrode frame whose upper and lower surfaces are open. When a voltage of, for example, +6.5 kV is applied to the counter electrode and a voltage of, for example, -6.5 kV is applied to the counter electrode, air near the discharge line is ionized and positive ions are generated, and the positive electrode has a negative potential. When moving toward the air, it collides with air molecules and kinetic energy of positive ions is given to the air molecules to move the air. This is a wind called an ion wind, and since the counter electrode plate is disposed above the discharge wire, the ion wind here passes through the filter 40 from the suction port 14 located below the suction port 13 and passes through the filter 40. Through the space 10 upward, a discharge port 17 on the upper front surface of the main body 1 and a discharge port 18 on the upper front surface side.
Is discharged to the outside. Since the filter 4 is grounded or set to a negative potential, dust in the air charged to a positive potential is collected by the filter 4.

A negative ion supply section 8 comprising an ionization needle 80 and a counter electrode plate 81 is provided above the space 10 and near the discharge port 17. The ionization needle 80 is applied with a voltage of, for example, -6.5 kV, and air is ionized near the tip of the ionization needle 80 to generate negative ions, and between the ionization needle 80 and the grounded return electrode plate 81. The ion wind is guided along the generated lines of electric force, and purified air added with negative ions, which is considered to be good for the human body, is discharged from the discharge ports 17 and 18 into the room.

Here, as shown in FIG. 9, if the ionization needle 80 is disposed near the center of the discharge port with its tip facing the front, and the counter electrode plate 81 is disposed obliquely forward with respect to the ionization needle 80, The negative ions are preferentially discharged from the discharge port 17 toward the front side, so that even when the main body 1 is installed near a wall, the negative ions can be effectively generated in the entire room. As shown in FIG. 10, the ionization needle 80 is disposed below the discharge port 18 on the side of the humidification block 5 and its tip is directed upward.
When 1 is disposed obliquely above the ionization needle 80, negative ions are preferentially discharged obliquely forward of the main body 1 from the discharge port 18, which is advantageous in that the negative ions can be distributed throughout the room. It becomes something.
Since the humidification block 5 and the negative ion supply section 8 are separated from each other, there is no fear of electric shock due to water leakage or the like.

As shown in FIG. 8, the humidifying block 5 has a large number of alternately laminated flat humidifying elements 50 made of a water-absorbing material such as pulp and corrugated spacers 51. Rectangular frame 5
2 and a humidifying element 5 from one lower surface.
A suction part 53 that is integral with or separate from the bottom part 0 is hung.
The upper end 53 having a water absorbing property has its lower end positioned in the water receiving tray 15 for receiving the water supplied from the tank 6, and the water supplied from the tank 6 into the water receiving tray 15 is supplied to the humidifying element 50 by the capillary phenomenon. Supply.

The tank 6 is detachable from the main body 1 and is opened when mounted on the main body 1.
The water supplied from the tank 6 is supplied to the water receiving tray 1 through an on-off valve 65 provided on the main body 1 side.
Sent to 5. This on-off valve 65 is provided in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 2, a watertight packing 65a, 65a and a water supply groove 65b are orthogonally arranged at the lower end at a cylindrical shape having an opening / closing operation portion 66 at the upper end. By rotating the opening / closing valve 65 about the axis by the rotation operation of the opening / closing operation section 66, the water passage from the tank 6 to the water receiving tray 15 is closed with a watertight packing 65a as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG.
5b to open. In the open state, water from the tank 6 flows to the water tray 15, but when closed, the water supply to the water tray 15 is shut off.

The on-off valve 65 opens and closes a water channel by its up and down operation as shown in FIG. 13, or opens and closes a water channel by rotation around a horizontal axis as shown in FIG. It may be. Furthermore,
The valve 60 of the tank 6 may also serve as the on-off valve 65. FIGS. 15 to 17 show an example of this case. When the opening / closing operation unit 66 ′ arranged on the front surface of the main body 1 is pushed in, the wedge-shaped opening / closing operation unit 66 ′ is moved to the tank 6.
Body 1 so that the tank 6 floats below
The pin 60 that opens the valve 60 when attached to the
, And the valve 60 is closed. When the opening / closing operation section 66 'is pulled back, the tank 6 returns to its original position, and the valve 60
Is pushed open by the pin 67.

If the tank 6 filled with water is mounted on the main body 1 and the on-off valve 65 is opened, water is supplied to the humidifying element 50 of the humidifying block 5 as described above. When the blower 3 including the fan 30 and the motor 31 is operated, the air that has passed through the filter 4 from the suction port 13 passes through the humidification block 5 and is discharged from the outlet 16 into the room. At this time, the moisture held by the humidifying element 50 is vaporized and humidification is performed.

When the ion wind inducing means 2 is operated, the suction port 14 is connected to the discharge ports 17, 1 as described above.
Ion wind flowing to 8 flows. At this time, the discharge port 18 is formed as a part of the outlet 16 which is an outlet of the wind by the blower 2, and the ionic wind flowing to the discharge port 18 passes through the vicinity of the humidification block 5. I have. For this reason, even when only the ion wind inducing means 2 is operated, the wind induced by the ion wind flows in the humidification block 5, and therefore, the ion wind passes directly through the humidification block 5. Although this is not the case, humidification by vaporization of water from the surface of the humidifying element 50 is promoted.

When the blower 3 is operated and water is supplied to the humidifying block 5, the humidifying block 5
Therefore, it is suitable as an operation mode when the humidity is very low. Further, when the ion wind inducing means 2 is operated and water is supplied to the humidifying block 5, there is no blasting sound and humidification is performed, so that it is suitable as an indoor operation mode at night. I have. When the blower 3 is operated, the ion wind inducing means 2 may also be operated. This is because electrical collection of the charged dust by the filter 4 can be expected. Also, by operating the negative ion supply unit 8, negative ions can be supplied to the room.

On the other hand, a humidity sensor 7 is provided on a side surface of the main body 1. The output of the humidity sensor 7 is input to an operation control circuit. The operation control circuit includes a blower 3 including the fan 30 and the motor 31 and an ion wind inducing means 2.
And controls the operation of the negative ion supply unit 8,
In addition to a manual operation mode in which only the ion wind inducing means 2 and the minus supply unit 8 are operated, a mode in which the blower 3 is operated in addition to these modes (or a mode in which the blower 3 is operated alone), and a mode corresponding to humidity. It has an automatic operation mode for driving. In the automatic operation mode, when the indoor humidity is a predetermined value (for example, 50% or less), the blowing device 3 (and the ionic wind inducing means 2) capable of increasing the amount of vaporized water due to the large blowing amount. It operates and switches the intensity of operation according to humidity to change the amount of air to be blown.
Is stopped, and the ion wind inducing means 2 is operated to supply an appropriate amount of humidity.

Incidentally, the humidifying block 5 is removed from the tank 6.
In the configuration in which the water receiving tray 15 is provided for supplying water to the humidifying element 50 in the above, when the main body 1 falls down, water spills from the water receiving tray 15, and this water may cause a short circuit or the like. No. For this reason, in the illustrated example, the distance L from the valve 60 of the tank 6 to the water receiving tray 15 is reduced, and at the same time, the water depth of the water passage connecting between the two is reduced to a minimum value in consideration of the ease of water flow. Humidifying element 5
By keeping the minimum value of about 10 mm in consideration of the water absorption point of 0, the amount of water that spills when falling down is kept small, and the valve 60 of the tank 6 is set at a place close to the center of the main body 1 so that Water pan 15 even when 1 is tilted in any direction
The water depth is kept constant.

Further, the fan case of the blower 3 is arranged so as to extend above the water tray 15 as is apparent from FIG. 5, so that water spilled from the water tray 15 does not go to the blower 3 side. In addition, even if water enters the fan case when the humidifying block 5 is replaced or the main body 1 is tilted, the air outlet in the fan case is one side from the center where the motor is located as shown in FIG. And water dripping from the air outlet does not hit the motor. Further, by making the fan case the same as the outer case of the main body 1, when the water accumulated at the lower part of the fan case is drained as shown in FIG.

If the valve 60 of the tank 6 remains open even if the main body 1 falls down, water will leak out of the tank 6. It is preferable that the inner wall is provided with a slope so that the tank 6 is easily detached from the main body 1 when the main body 1 falls. If the tank 6 comes off the body 1, the valve 6
Since 0 is closed, no water leaks from the tank 6.

Next, a control example of the operation of the ion wind inducing means 2 and the blower 3 will be described with reference to FIG. In this humidifying device, a switch SW, a timer switch SWT, and a reset switch SWR are provided on the front surface of the main body 1, a humidity display lamp LED6 for displaying humidity in green when comfortable, and red in dryness, and an operation mode. Five display lamps LED1, LED2, LED3, LE
D4, LED5, timer display lamps L6, L7, L8 for displaying the set time (for example, 1 hour, 4 hours, and 8 hours) by the timer switch SWT;
And a display lamp L9 for prompting the user to change the operation mode. When the switch SW is pressed, H is input to the counter, and every time the switch SW is pressed, the operation mode is automatically set to the standard, automatic high, ion, standard, high, They are switched in the order of off.

During operation (when in an operation mode other than off), the ion wind inducing means 2 is always in an operating state. In other words, in FIG. 18, the inverter NOT2 outputs H in response to the L signal of the OFF output, thereby turning on the transistor Q3 and turning on the display lamp LED.
At the same time, the phototriac PT3 is turned on to supply power to the high-voltage generating unit HV in the ion wind inducing means 2 to start high-voltage output.

When the automatic standard output becomes H, the display lamp L
ED1 lights up to indicate that it is in the automatic operation mode, and H is input to the AND circuit AND1. The comparator CMP1 to which the other input of the AND circuit AND1 is connected
Is a comparison between the output of the humidity sensor 7 and the reference voltage. If the output of the humidity sensor 7 is lower than the reference value (the humidity is low), the output of the AND circuit AND1 becomes H. The transistor Q1 is turned on via the circuit OR1, and the blower 3 is turned on through the phototriac PT1.
Is operated in the standard mode. When the transistor Q1 is on, the display lamp LED
2 lights up. If the humidity increases, the output of the comparator CMP1 becomes L, so that the fan motor M is stopped and the display lamp LED2 is turned off. This automatic standard mode may be selected in order to avoid entering the strong operation mode at night when the blowing noise becomes a problem.

When the automatic strong output becomes H, the display lamp LE
D3 lights up to indicate that it is in the automatic high operation mode, and H is input to the AND circuit AND3. In the automatic strong mode, the operation of the fan motor M is controlled with reference to the output of the humidity sensor 7. Here, two comparators CMP2 and CMP3 are provided, and the comparator CMP2 is higher than the comparator CMP3. A reference voltage is given. The former reference voltage is Vsh and the latter reference voltage is V
sl, the output of the humidity sensor 7 changes the reference voltage to Vsl.
If lower, the outputs of both comparators CMP2 and CMP3 are L
And the output of the AND circuit AND2 is L and the NAND circuit N
The output of AND1 becomes H, and the translator Q2 is turned on via the AND circuit AND4 to operate the fan motor M in the strong mode and turn on the display lamp LED4. The output of the humidity sensor 7 has two reference voltages Vsh, V
If the value is an intermediate value of sl, the fan motor M is operated in the normal mode, and the output of the humidity sensor 7 is set to the reference voltage V
If it is higher than sh, the fan motor M stops.

When the ion output becomes H, only the state of supplying power to the high-pressure generating unit HV in the above-described ion wind inducing means 2 is continued. When the manual standard output is turned on, the fan motor M is operated through the OR circuit OR1 and the transistor Q1, and the display lamp LED2 is turned on. At this time, the output of the humidity sensor 7 is not referred to.

Further, when the manual strong output becomes H, the fan motor M is operated in the strong mode via the OR circuit OR2 and the transistor Q2, and the display lamp LED4 is turned on. The output of the humidity sensor 7 is a comparator CM.
P4 and CMP5 are input to the comparator CMP
4 is higher than the reference voltage of the comparator CMP4, so that when the output of the humidity sensor 7 is lower than the lower reference voltage, the indicator lamp LED6 is lit in red, and the intermediate between the two reference voltages. If the value is a value, the indicator lamp LED6 is lit in green to indicate that the condition is appropriate. When a voltage higher than the higher reference voltage is output from the humidity sensor 7, the display lamp is turned on in both red and green to visually display orange. The humidity display can be displayed in four or more stages by increasing the number of comparators, and the humidity can be digitally displayed.

A means for forcibly preventing entry into the strong operation mode at night may be provided. For example, an external light detecting member such as a phototransistor is provided to enable the operation of the fan motor M according to the operation mode only when the external light detecting member detects external light. When no light is detected, that is, when the light is dark, the strong operation of the fan motor M (or the operation itself of the fan motor M) is prohibited.

FIGS. 19 to 22 show other examples. The humidifier shown here has the same basic configuration as that described above, but has an air passage opening / closing plate 35 slidable in the left-right direction inside the main body 1. The air path opening / closing plate 35 is normally located below the tank 6 as shown in FIG.
If moved to the left in the figure, the flow path to the humidification block 5 (the flow path to the discharge port 18) is closed as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, and at this time, the blowing device 3 and the wind by the ion wind inducing means 2 are discharged from the discharge port 17 on the front surface of the main body 1 without passing through the humidifying block 5,
It is discharged without being humidified only by being cleaned.

Instead of blocking the flow of air to the humidifying block 5, the humidifying block 5 may be moved out of the flow path.

[0034]

As described above, according to the present invention, an ion wind inducing means for inducing an ion wind, a water absorbing humidifying element installed in or near a flow path of the ion wind, And a water supply unit for supplying moisture to the humidifying element, which promotes vaporization of moisture from the humidifying element holding moisture by the ionic wind induced by the ionic wind inducing means. It can also be used suitably in the bedroom.

By providing a blower device using a fan, it is possible to respond to an increase in the amount of vaporized water when it is desired to increase the amount of water vaporized. In order to eliminate the need to separately provide a humidifying element in both the air flow path of the air blower and the ion wind induced by the ion wind inducing means, it is possible to make the apparatus compact and to use the ion wind inducing means and the air blower. It is possible to reduce the cost in the case where both are provided.

Further, if the suction side flow path of the blower crosses the ion flow path, and if a humidifying element is arranged in the discharge side flow path of the blower, the ion wind inducing means provided with the discharge unit can be used. Since the humidifying element can be separated, safety can be enhanced, and further, the size can be reduced as a whole. By installing an air purification filter in the ion air flow path by the ion wind inducing means and the air flow path by the air blower, it can function as an air purifier, and clean the indoor air with moisture. Things.

By providing a humidity sensor and a control unit for controlling the operation of the blower and the ion wind inducing means according to the humidity detected by the humidity sensor,
Appropriate humidity can always be maintained. Also,
By providing a valve that shuts off water supply from the water supply unit to the humidification element, the humidification operation when the humidity is high can be stopped. If this valve also serves as a valve provided in a tank that is a water supply unit, it can be handled without providing a new valve.

Further, by providing a negative ion supply section for adding negative ions to the ion wind, negative ions that are good for the human body can be discharged into the room. In addition, a bypass path that does not pass through the humidifying element is provided in the ion air flow path and the flow path of the blower, and switching means for switching the flow path that passes through the humidifying element and the bypass flow path is provided. A device that can be moved out of the path and the outside of the flow path of the blowing device can respond to a case where only blowing is required and humidification is not required.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an example of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the same.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the same.

FIG. 5 is a transverse sectional view of the same.

FIG. 6 is a horizontal sectional view of the same.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a humidifying block.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating another arrangement example of the negative ion supply unit.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing still another example of the arrangement of the negative ion supply unit.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an on-off valve.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are horizontal sectional views showing the operation of the on-off valve.

FIG. 13 shows another example of the on-off valve, and (a) and (b) are perspective views.

14A and 14B show still another example of the on-off valve, in which FIG. 14A is a perspective view, and FIGS. 14B and 14C are front views.

FIG. 15 is a horizontal sectional view of another example.

FIG. 16 is a partial sectional view of the same.

FIG. 17 is a partial sectional view of the same.

FIG. 18 is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of a circuit.

FIG. 19 is a front view of another example.

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view of the same.

FIG. 21 is a transverse sectional view when the flow path is changed.

FIG. 22 is a longitudinal sectional view when the flow path is changed.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 ion wind inducing means 3 blower 4 filter 5 humidification block 6 water tank 8 negative ion supply unit 50 humidification element

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Sadahiko Wakaba 1048 Kadoma Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd. (72) Inventor Kenji Obata 1048 Kadoma Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd.

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. An ion wind inducing means for inducing an ion wind, a humidifying element having a water absorbing property installed in or near a flow path of the ion wind, and a water supply unit for supplying water to the humidifying element. A humidifying device characterized in that: 2. The humidifying device according to claim 1, further comprising a fan-based blowing device, wherein a humidifying element is provided in a blowing path of the blowing device and near the ion wind passage. 3. The air supply device according to claim 2, wherein the suction side flow path of the blower is provided across the ion wind flow path, and a humidifying element is disposed in the discharge side flow path of the blower. Humidification equipment. 4. An air purifying filter is provided in each of a flow path of an ion wind by an ion wind inducing means and a blowing path by a blower.
The humidifying device as described. 5. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a humidity sensor and a control unit for controlling the operation of the blower and the ion wind inducing means in accordance with the humidity detected by the humidity sensor. The humidifier according to any one of the above items. 6. A valve for shutting off water supply from a water supply unit to a humidifying element.
The humidifier according to any one of the above items 5. 7. The humidifier according to claim 6, wherein the valve is a valve provided in a tank serving as a water supply unit. 8. The humidifier according to claim 1, further comprising a negative ion supply unit for adding negative ions to the ion wind. 9. A ionic air flow path and a flow path of a blower are provided with a bypass which does not pass through a humidifying element.
4. The humidifier according to claim 3, further comprising switching means for switching between a flow path passing through the humidifying element and a bypass flow path. 10. The humidifying device according to claim 3, wherein the humidifying element is capable of retreating outside the ion air flow path and the flow path of the blower.