KR102450262B1 - Faucet that can be cleased by sterilizing water and dried by purified air - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a faucet and, more specifically, to a faucet capable of being dried by purified air after being cleaned by sterilizing water. The faucet includes: a valve (170) for turning on/off a water supply; an electrolysis module (180) connected to the valve (170) and converting tap water into hypochlorous acid by electrolysis; a liquid outlet (150) for discharging sterilizing water (50) containing the hypochlorous acid; a plasma module (200) converting introduced air into air-active species by plasma; a fan (240) connected to the plasma module (200) and allowing air to flow; a gas flow path (245) having one end connected to the fan (240) and the other end extending to both sides of the liquid outlet (150); a gas outlet (210) connected to the other end of the gas flow path (245) and protruding from both sides of the liquid outlet (150) to discharge purified air (70) downward; a sterilizing water sensor (260) recognizing an approaching body or object in a non-contact manner and discharging the sterilizing water (50); a purified air sensor (270) recognizing the approaching body or object in a non-contact manner and discharging the purified air (70); and a control unit (250) controlling the operation of the faucet based on outputs of the sterilizing water sensor (260) and the purified air sensor (270). Therefore, secondary contamination by bacteria, viruses, and infectious diseases during drying can be prevented.

Description

Faucet that can be cleaned by sterilizing water and dried by purified air {Faucet that can be cleased by sterilizing water and dried by purified air}

The present invention relates to a faucet, and more particularly, to a faucet that can be dried by purifying air after washing with sterilizing water.

Because people do everything with their hands, there are always various harmful bacteria and viruses on their hands. Therefore, the need for personal hand hygiene management has been raised, especially in schools where group meals are provided, including facilities used by many unspecified people such as restaurants, hospitals, research institutes, rest areas, convenience stores, pubs, and entertainment establishments such as karaoke rooms. Even before meals, in kindergartens, playrooms, etc., good hand hygiene is required.

In general hand hygiene, you can remove various germs remaining on your hands just by washing with soap under running water, but the reality is that you cannot wash your hands immediately after touching objects or doing work. always exposed to us.

In particular, as infectious diseases such as swine flu, MERS, and SARS, as well as the corona virus that are currently prevalent in Korea as well as around the world, spread terribly due to infection through hand contact as well as droplets through people's mouth, it is necessary to wash and disinfect hands. Social interest is growing significantly.

Therefore, as a basic measure to prevent infectious diseases caused by hand contact, many places used by unspecified people, including masks, are essential to provide hand sanitizer so that people entering and leaving can use the hand sanitizer.

This hand sanitizer is a dispenser pump attached to the container, and many people who use it pump the required amount of disinfectant to discharge the disinfectant by lifting the container itself or pressing the lever with their hands. As a result, it can become infected, and frequent use of the disinfectant solution has a problem in that there is a possibility of causing skin reactions such as rash, inflammation, and itching by drying the user's hands with alcohol.

In addition, if the user can wash their hands, washing their hands with soap containing a surfactant instead of hand sanitizer is effective in preventing infectious diseases. However, solid soap requires direct contact for use, and liquid soap also has a problem in that it is infected through hand pressing the lever for dispensing.

In addition, if you wash your hands and dry them in the wind, secondary contamination of bacteria or viruses may be caused from dust in the fan, duct, and filter of the dryer.

1. Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0116108 (faucet control device and method, and faucet), 2. Korean Patent Registration No. 10-2297260 (sanitary faucet).

Accordingly, the present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a faucet that can be dried by purifying air after washing with sterilizing water.

However, the technical problems to be achieved in the present invention are not limited to the technical problems mentioned above, and other technical problems not mentioned are clearly to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs from the description below. can be understood

In order to achieve the above technical problem, in the faucet, a valve 170 for turning on and off the water supply to be supplied; an electrolysis module 180 connected to the valve 170 and converting tap water into hypochlorous acid by electrolysis; Liquid outlet 150 for discharging the sterilizing water 50 containing hypochlorous acid; Plasma module 200 for converting the introduced air into air active species by plasma; a fan 240 connected to the plasma module 200 and flowing air; a gas flow path 245 having one end connected to the fan 240 and the other end extending to both sides of the liquid outlet 150; a gas outlet 210 connected to the other end of the gas flow path 245 and protruding from both sides of the liquid outlet 150 to discharge the purification wind 70 downward; a sterilizing water sensor 260 for discharging sterilizing water 50 by recognizing an approaching body or object as non-contact; a purification wind sensor 270 that recognizes an approaching body or object as non-contact and discharges the purification wind 70; and a control unit 250 for controlling the operation of the faucet based on the outputs of the sterilizing water sensor 260 and the purifying wind sensor 270; A faucet is provided.

In addition, a UV lamp 220 for sterilization and heating is further provided on the gas flow path 245 .

Also, the controller 250 may cut off the power of the plasma module 200 and operate the fan 240 .

In addition, the plasma module 200 includes a pre-filter 201 having an outlet 206 connected to the lower end of the faucet formed thereon; a carbon filter 204 having a cylindrical shape provided inside the pre-filter 201; and a mesh electrode 203 spirally wound on the outer surface of the carbon filter 204 .

In addition, the power faucet 100, the electrolysis module 180 is built-in vertical portion 120; and a horizontal part 130 connected to the vertical part 120 and having a fan 240 , a gas flow path 245 , a liquid outlet 150 , and a gas outlet 210 .

In addition, a touch switch for input and the display 110 are further provided at the upper end of the horizontal unit 130 .

In addition, the control unit 250 is provided on the circuit board 190 positioned below the switch and the display 110 .

In addition, the liquid outlet 150 and the sterilizing water sensor 260 are located on the bottom of the free end area of the horizontal part 130, and the purification wind sensor 270 is located on both sides of the free end area, respectively.

It further includes a switch and a display 110 provided on the horizontal portion 130, and the control unit 250 controls the sterilization water or tap water to come out according to the input of the switch and the display 110.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to dry immediately after washing with sterilizing water by a purifying wind. Therefore, it is possible to prevent secondary contamination by bacteria, viruses, and infectious diseases during drying.

In addition, since the faucet of the present invention is operated by a non-contact sensor, it is possible to omit the action of touching the faucet by hand to operate the faucet.

In addition, since the electrolysis module directly electrolyzes water supply to generate hypochlorous acid, there is no need to add a separate disinfectant or additive. And, since it is a direct water type electrolysis module, it is possible to fundamentally prevent contamination of sterilized water stored for a long period of time.

Since the plasma module for purification of the present invention uses a flexible carbon filter, plasma can be generated inexpensively. Therefore, the faucet from which the purification wind is discharged can be installed at low cost.

However, the effects obtainable in the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs from the following description. will be able

The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention, and serve to further understand the technical spirit of the present invention together with the detailed description of the present invention to be described later. It should not be construed as being limited only to
1 is a perspective view of a faucet that can be cleaned by sterilizing water and dried by a purification wind according to the present invention;
Fig. 2a is a plan view of Fig. 1;
Figure 2b is a front view of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of Figure 1;
4 is an internal side view of the faucet of FIG. 3;
Figure 5 is a side cross-sectional view of Figure 1;
6A is a perspective view of the plasma module 200 shown in FIG. 5;
6B is a cross-sectional view of the plasma module 200 shown in FIG. 6A;
7 is a schematic block diagram of a faucet according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail so that those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily implement them. However, since the description of the present invention is merely an embodiment for structural or functional description, the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited by the embodiment described in the text. That is, since the embodiment is capable of various changes and may have various forms, it should be understood that the scope of the present invention includes equivalents capable of realizing the technical idea. In addition, since the object or effect presented in the present invention does not mean that a specific embodiment should include all of them or only such effects, it should not be understood that the scope of the present invention is limited thereby.

The meaning of the terms described in the present invention should be understood as follows.

Terms such as “first” and “second” are for distinguishing one component from another, and the scope of rights should not be limited by these terms. For example, a first component may be termed a second component, and similarly, a second component may also be termed a first component. When a component is referred to as being “connected to” another component, it may be directly connected to the other component, but it should be understood that other components may exist in between. On the other hand, when it is mentioned that a certain element is "directly connected" to another element, it should be understood that the other element does not exist in the middle. On the other hand, other expressions describing the relationship between elements, that is, "between" and "in between" or "neighboring to" and "directly adjacent to", etc., should be interpreted similarly.

The singular expression is to be understood as including the plural expression unless the context clearly dictates otherwise, and terms such as "comprises" or "have" refer to the specified feature, number, step, action, component, part or these It is intended to indicate that a combination exists, and it should be understood that it does not preclude the possibility of the existence or addition of one or more other features or numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

All terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs, unless otherwise defined. Terms defined in a commonly used dictionary should be interpreted as having the meaning consistent with the context of the related art, and cannot be interpreted as having an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in the present invention.

configuration of the embodiment

Hereinafter, the configuration of the preferred embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 is a perspective view of a faucet capable of cleaning by sterilizing water and drying by purification wind according to the present invention, FIG. 2A is a plan view of FIG. 1 , and FIG. 2B is a front view of FIG. 1 . 1, 2A and 2B, the vertical part 120 is fixed to one side of the table, sink, and washing tank. The horizontal portion 130 is connected in the horizontal direction from the vertical portion 120, and one end forms a free end. A switch and a display 110 are provided on the upper surface of the horizontal unit 130 for mode selection and display. The switch and display 110 may be an LCD or LED with a touch screen. Through the input of the switch, tap water can come out instead of sterilizing water, and the operation can be selected so that air comes out instead of purified air.

The liquid outlet 150 is provided on the bottom surface of the horizontal part 130, and the gas outlet 210 is provided on both sides. The gas outlet 210 may protrude from both sides to discharge the purification wind 70 or air downward.

3 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1 , FIG. 4 is an internal side view of the faucet in FIG. 3 , and FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of FIG. 1 . 3 to 5 , a connector 140 is provided at the lower end of the vertical part 120 . The plasma module 200 is directly connected to the connector 140 , and a screw for fixing the faucet 100 is formed. A water pipe 90 passes through the side of the connector 140 . The water pipe 90 passes through the side of the connector 140 and is connected to the lower end of the water pipe 160 .

The water pipe 160 is connected to the electrolysis module 180, and a valve 170 for controlling the flow rate of tap water is installed in the middle region. The operation of the valve 170 is controlled by the controller 250 and may be a solenoid valve that operates on/off or an electronic control valve whose opening/closing area is adjusted.

The electrolysis module 180 is a tank of about 0.3 to 1 liter, and insoluble electrodes (Dimensionally Stable Electrode, DSE) of the anode and the cathode for electrolysis are installed therein. The insoluble electrode refers to an electrode material in which titanium is coated with platinum, iridium, ruthenium, etc., which are noble metal oxides, and has a characteristic of improving electrical conductivity, but has a problem of poor durability. Accordingly, the insoluble electrode of the present invention may be an insoluble electrode with improved durability through surface treatment, coating, and heat treatment processes.

As the tap water introduced into the electrolysis module 180 is electrolyzed, dissolved chlorine is converted into hypochlorous acid (HOCl). Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) has a high sterilization power that can kill 99.99% of bacteria. Water containing hypochlorous acid (HOCl) becomes sterile water (50).

One side of the liquid flow path 230 is connected to the electrolysis module 180 , passes through the horizontal part 130 and extends to the liquid outlet 150 .

The liquid outlet 150 includes a spray nozzle, and can spray the sterilizing water 50 under the pressure of tap water. The liquid outlet 150 is installed to form an inclination angle of 30 to 60 degrees with the horizontal portion 130 so that the sprayed sterilizing water 50 is easy to reach.

The gas outlet 210 protrudes like a wing (or a triangular shape) from both sides of the horizontal portion 130 , and has an outlet in a downward direction. The gas outlet 210 may discharge the purification wind 70 to dry hands. One end of the gas flow path 245 is connected to the fan 240 , and the other end is connected to the gas outlet 210 . A UV lamp 220 for UV sterilization and warm wind is further installed in the gas flow path 245 .

The fan 240 is provided between the gas flow path 245 and the plasma module 200 to blow the purification wind 70 . The fan 240 is composed of a motor and a blade. The fan 240 has a high-speed rotational force (eg, 100,000 rpm) for quick drying. The fan 240 may be an air pump.

The sterilizing water sensor 260 may recognize the approach of a hand or an object in a non-connected manner, and transmits the recognition result to the controller 250 . The sterilizing water sensor 260 is installed below the free end of the horizontal part 130 . The sterilizing water sensor 260 may be an ultrasonic type, an infrared type, or the like, and may optionally be a pedal, a knee switch, or the like.

The purification wind sensor 270 may recognize the approach of a hand or an object in a non-connected manner, and transmits the recognition result to the controller 250 . The purification wind sensor 260 is installed on both sides of the free end of the horizontal portion 130, respectively. The purification wind sensor 270 may be an ultrasonic type, an infrared type, or the like, and may optionally be a pedal, a knee switch, or the like.

6A is a perspective view of the plasma module 200 shown in FIG. 5 , and FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of the plasma module 200 shown in FIG. 6A . 6A and 6B , the plasma module 200 is screwed to the connector 140 under the faucet 100 . The plasma module 200 of the present invention generates air plasma discharge without supply of gas for discharge.

The pre-filter 201 of the plasma module 200 has a cylindrical shape and air is introduced thereinto. It has an outlet 206 through which the purifying wind 70 or air flows out. A female thread is formed inside the outlet 206 .

The inside of the pre-filter 201 forms a chamber 205 , and the carbon filter 204 is installed inside the chamber 204 . The carbon filter 204 has a cylindrical shape having many pores and a sufficient thickness. The carbon filter 204 may remove air-active species (eg, ozone and NOx) generated when plasma is generated. One end of the carbon filter 204 is in close contact with the outlet 206 .

The mesh electrode 203 is wound around the outer surface of the carbon filter 204 in a spiral shape. Plasma is generated in the mesh electrode 203 , and the air passing therethrough generates active oxygen species (ROS) and/or active nitrogen species (RNS) by the plasma to exert high sterilization power, thereby becoming a purification wind 70 . The mesh electrode 203 may be a flexible plasma electrode (FPE). The flexible plasma electrode generates active oxygen species and active nitrogen species through air plasma discharge at low temperature and atmospheric pressure without supply of external air (gas for discharge) to sterilize and/or detoxify harmful gases such as viruses and VOCs contained in polluted air. It means a plasma electrode having a structure that can be deformed for decontamination.

Meanwhile, conventionally, flat dielectric barrier discharger (DBD method), corona discharger (Corona method), and plasma jet technology have been used for air plasma discharge technology at atmospheric pressure, but gas for discharge such as helium or argon is used in plasma reactor Additional facilities for input are required, and there is a problem in that there are spatial limitations such as the volume and size of the entire system.

On the other hand, the flexible plasma electrode generates air plasma discharge at atmospheric pressure without input of gas for discharge, so that the installation of equipment for supplying the gas for discharge is omitted, and as it has a flexible structure so that it can be changed in shape, it By eliminating the limitation, there is an effect of improving the conventional atmospheric pressure plasma discharge technology.

7 is a schematic block diagram of a faucet according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7 , the control unit 250 controls the overall operation of the power faucet 100 and each component. The control unit 250 may be implemented as a CPU or a microcomputer on the circuit board 190 positioned below the switch and the display 110 among the horizontal units 130 .

The control unit 250 may cut off the power of the plasma module 200 and operate the fan 240 to discharge air wind.

The faucet 100 of the present invention may include a heater, a hot/cold water selection valve, an LED operation lamp, a buzzer for operation sound, and a power supply, as necessary. A red light-emitting LED may flicker around the liquid outlet 150 , and a blue light-emitting LED may flash around the gas outlet 210 .

operation of the embodiment

Hereinafter, the operation of the preferred embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

When the contaminated hand approaches the faucet 100 , the sterilizing water sensor 260 detects it and outputs it to the control unit 250 .

The control unit 250 opens the valve 170 and applies power to the electrolysis module 180 to generate the sterilizing water 50 . The generated sterilizing water 50 is sprayed from the liquid outlet 150 through the liquid flow path 230 in a spray manner. Hand washing is performed for several seconds to several tens of seconds, and the control unit 250 shuts off the valve 170 according to the output of the sterilization water sensor 260 .

Then, wet hands are moved to both sides of the faucet 100, respectively. Then, the purification wind sensor 270 detects the hand and outputs it to the control unit 250 . The control unit 250 operates the fan 240 and the plasma module 200 . Bacteria and viruses in the air introduced into the pre-filter 201 are sterilized by plasma. The sufficiently sterilized purification wind 70 rises through the empty space inside the connector 140 and the vertical part 120 , and then flows into the gas flow path 245 by the fan 240 . Then, the purification wind 70 is discharged to the gas outlet 210 through the gas flow path 245 . It is possible to completely dry the hands with this purification wind 70, and to prevent secondary contamination caused by wiping on a towel. At this time, the purification wind 70 is further sterilized by the ultraviolet rays irradiated from the UV lamp 220 , and the purification wind 70 is warmly heated by the high temperature UV lamp 220 . Optionally, the controller 250 may discharge the sterilized and heated wind only by the UV lamp 220 instead of the purification wind 70 by cutting off the power of the plasma module 200 .

If the hand is not detected by the sterilizing water sensor 260 and the purified wind sensor 270 , the control unit 250 blocks the valve 170 , and the electrolysis module 180 , the fan 240 and the plasma module 200 . Stops the operation and enters standby mode.

The detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention disclosed as described above is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make and practice the present invention. Although the above has been described with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes can be made to the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, those skilled in the art can use each configuration described in the above-described embodiments in a way in combination with each other. Accordingly, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the present invention. Accordingly, the above detailed description should not be construed as restrictive in all respects but as exemplary. The scope of the present invention should be determined by a reasonable interpretation of the appended claims, and all modifications within the equivalent scope of the present invention are included in the scope of the present invention. The present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein. In addition, claims that are not explicitly cited in the claims may be combined to form an embodiment or may be included as a new claim by amendment after filing.

50: sterilizing water,
70: purification wind,
90: water pipe,
100: faucet,
110: switch and display;
120: vertical part,
130: horizontal part,
140: connector,
150: liquid outlet,
160: water pipe,
170: valve;
180: electrolytic module,
190: circuit board,
200: plasma module,
201: pre-filter,
203: mesh electrode,
204: carbon filter,
205: chamber,
206: outlet,
210: gas outlet,
220: UV lamp,
230: liquid flow furnace,
240: fan,
245: gas flow path,
250: control unit;
260: sterilization water sensor,
270: purification wind sensor.

Claims (9)

In the faucet 100,
A valve 170 for turning on and off the water supply to be supplied;
an electrolysis module 180 connected to the valve 170 and converting tap water into hypochlorous acid by electrolysis;
a liquid outlet 150 for discharging the sterilizing water 50 containing the hypochlorous acid;
Plasma module 200 for converting the introduced air into air active species by plasma;
a fan 240 connected to the plasma module 200 and flowing the air;
a gas flow path 245 having one end connected to the fan 240 and the other end extending to both sides of the liquid outlet 150;
a UV lamp 220 provided on the gas flow path 245 for sterilization and heating;
a gas outlet 210 connected to the other end of the gas flow path 245 and protruding from both sides of the liquid outlet 150 to discharge the purification wind 70 downward;
a sterilizing water sensor 260 for discharging the sterilizing water 50 by recognizing an approaching body or object as non-contact;
a purification wind sensor 270 that recognizes an approaching body or object as non-contact and discharges the purification wind 70; and
and a control unit 250 for controlling the operation of the faucet based on the outputs of the sterilizing water sensor 260 and the purified wind sensor 270 .
The plasma module 200,
a pre-filter 201 having an outlet 206 connected to the lower end of the faucet formed at an upper portion;
a carbon filter 204 having a cylindrical shape provided inside the pre-filter 201; and
A faucet capable of cleaning by sterilizing water and drying by purifying wind, characterized in that it includes; a mesh electrode (203) wound spirally from the outer surface of the carbon filter (204). delete The method of claim 1,
The control unit 250 cuts off the power of the plasma module 200, and the fan 240 can be operated. delete The method of claim 1,
The faucet 100 is
The electrolysis module 180 is built-in vertical portion 120; and
A horizontal part 130 connected to the vertical part 120 and having the fan 240, the gas flow path 245, the liquid outlet 150, and the gas outlet 210; A faucet that can be washed with sterilizing water and dried with a purifying wind. 6. The method of claim 5,
A faucet capable of washing with sterilizing water and drying with a purifying wind, characterized in that a touch switch for input and a display 110 are further provided at the upper end of the horizontal part 130 . 7. The method of claim 6,
The control unit 250 is a faucet capable of cleaning by sterilizing water and drying by purifying wind, characterized in that it is provided on the circuit board 190 located below the switch and the display 110 . 6. The method of claim 5,
The liquid outlet 150 and the sterilizing water sensor 260 are located on the bottom of the free end area of the horizontal part 130,
The faucet capable of washing by sterilizing water and drying by purifying wind, characterized in that the purification wind sensors 270 are respectively located on both sides of the free end area. 6. The method of claim 5,
It further includes a switch and a display 110 provided on the horizontal portion 130,
The control unit 250 controls the sterilization water or the tap water to come out according to the input of the switch and the display 110. The faucet can be washed with sterilizing water and dried by a purifying wind.

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