KR102621611B1 - High pressure steam sterilizer - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention includes a chamber formed in a cylindrical shape, arranged horizontally so that the longitudinal cross-section is circular, and containing an object to be sterilized therein; A boiler that supplies high-pressure steam into the chamber; a recovery container for recovering water in which the vapor supplied to the chamber has condensed; And it provides a high-pressure steam sterilizer including a control unit that monitors and controls the environment within the chamber.

Description

High pressure steam sterilizer

The present invention relates to a high-pressure steam sterilizer, and in particular, to a high-pressure steam sterilizer that enhances sterilizing power by reheating the generated steam with a microwafer and supplying it to the chamber so that the heat of the heater is not directly applied to the object to be sterilized.

In general, various medical instruments are stored and used after sterilization, and for this purpose, methods of sterilizing them using chemicals or high-temperature steam have been disclosed. Medical devices that are not used directly on the human body can be sterilized using chemicals, but most medical devices that are used directly on the human body are sterilized using high-temperature steam.

A conventional medical steam sterilizer using high-temperature steam is equipped with a chamber in which a sterilization room is formed so that medical instruments subject to sterilization can be placed inside, a heater placed at the bottom inside the chamber, and a control unit for controlling various electrical components.

Therefore, when room temperature water and an object to be sterilized are directly placed in the sterilization chamber of the chamber and a heater is driven to generate steam, the object to be sterilized is sterilized by high-temperature steam.

However, in the conventional medical steam sterilizer, water at room temperature is directly supplied to the sterilization chamber of the chamber, so not only does the actual sterilization operation take a lot of time, but there is also a risk that the object to be sterilized may be damaged by the heat of the heater during the heating process. In particular, small sterilized objects such as scalpels may be damaged due to high temperatures applied directly from the heater.

Patent Document 1: Republic of Korea Patent No. 10-1317386 Announcement date: October 11, 2013

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a high-pressure steam sterilizer that enhances sterilizing power by reheating the generated steam with a microwafer and supplying it to the chamber so that the heat of the heater is not directly applied to the object to be sterilized.

In order to achieve the above object, a high-pressure steam sterilizer according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a chamber formed in a cylindrical shape, arranged horizontally so that the longitudinal cross-section is circular, and accommodating the object to be sterilized therein; A boiler that supplies high-pressure steam into the chamber; a recovery container for recovering water in which the vapor supplied to the chamber has condensed; and a control unit that monitors and controls the environment within the chamber.

At this time, the chamber includes an inner wall where the object to be sterilized is accommodated therein; an outer wall surrounding the inner wall and being spaced a predetermined distance from the inner wall; an inlet disposed at the upper end of the chamber, supplying fluid between the inner wall and the outer wall; And it is disposed at the upper end of the chamber, and may include an outlet for discharging the fluid.

Additionally, it is a three-way valve disposed upstream of the inlet, and may include a control valve that selectively provides cooling water or high-temperature steam to the inlet under control of the control unit.

Meanwhile, a heater that provides high-temperature steam to the space between the inner and outer walls of the chamber through the control valve may be further included.

In addition, the heater converts hot water heated to a certain temperature from the boiler into high-temperature steam, and includes an ultrasonic diaphragm that disperses the high-temperature hot water supplied into fine water droplets; An oscillator that applies microwave electromagnetic waves to the fine water droplets dispersed by the ultrasonic diaphragm and heats them to a certain temperature; And it may include a shielding plate disposed between the ultrasonic diaphragm and the oscillator to prevent the microwave electromagnetic waves generated by the oscillator from being applied to the ultrasonic diaphragm.

According to the high pressure steam sterilizer of the present invention

First, since the generated steam is reheated with a microwafer and supplied to the chamber, the heat of the heater is not directly applied to the object to be sterilized, thereby minimizing damage to the object to be sterilized and increasing sterilization time and sterilization power.

Second, by maintaining the inner wall of the chamber above the sterilization temperature, condensation of high-pressure vapor on the inner wall of the chamber can be minimized.

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the external structure of a high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention.
Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of a high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention.
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the structure of a chamber applied to the high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention.
Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of a high-pressure steam sterilizer according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. At this time, note that in the attached drawings, like components are indicated by the same symbols whenever possible. Additionally, detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations that may obscure the gist of the present invention will be omitted. For the same reason, some components are exaggerated, omitted, or schematically shown in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing the external structure of the high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of the high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention, and Figure 3 is a chamber applied to the high-pressure steam sterilizer according to the present invention. This is a cross-sectional view explaining the structure. 1 to 3, the high-pressure steam sterilizer 1000 according to the present invention includes a chamber 100, a boiler 200, a pump 300, a recovery tank 400, and a control unit (not shown).

The high-pressure steam sterilizer 1000 sterilizes the object to be sterilized by injecting high-pressure steam into the chamber 100. At this time, as shown in FIG. 2, a pump 300 and a boiler are used to supply high-pressure steam to the chamber 100. (200) may be provided. The pump 300 and boiler 200 may be provided below the chamber 100, but are not limited thereto.

The pump 300 receives water from the outside and delivers high-pressure steam to the chamber 100 through the boiler 200. At this time, the pump 300 can receive water from a tap.

The boiler 200 heats the supplied water into a vapor state, and the vapor delivered from the boiler 200 is supplied into the interior through the end of the chamber 100.

Although not shown at this time, it is preferable that the chamber 100 be provided with a diffusion plate to spread the vapor evenly within the chamber 100.

The steam supplied into the chamber 100 may sterilize the object to be sterilized contained within the chamber 100 and then be discharged to the outside through the recovery container 400 provided below the chamber 100.

The chamber 100 has a cylindrical shape, and at least one end is open to accommodate the object to be sterilized therein.

A door is provided to seal the open end or both ends of the chamber 100.

At this time, one end or both ends of the chamber 100 may be provided with a seal that is made of an elastic material such as silicon and expands when air is injected into the interior, and the door seals one end or both ends of the chamber 100. After this, air is injected into the sealing hole, so that the chamber 100 can be maintained in a tightly sealed state while the object to be sterilized is sterilized.

As shown in FIG. 3, the chamber 100 in the present invention has a dual structure including an inner wall 110 in which the object to be sterilized is accommodated, and an outer wall 120 formed to surround the inner wall 110. The outer wall 120 is spaced apart from the inner wall 110 by a predetermined distance to form a space between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120.

Therefore, after completing the sterilization process using high-pressure steam for the object to be sterilized contained in the chamber 100,

Refrigerant is supplied to the space between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 of the chamber 100.

At this time, the supplied refrigerant may be water or air, and since it is used to cool the heated chamber 100, it is preferable to have a temperature lower than the temperature of the heated chamber 100.

When the refrigerant is water, supplied water can be used to form high-pressure steam, and in this case, water can be supplied through piping between the pump 300 and the chamber 100. In this case, a valve capable of controlling the supply of water may be provided between the pump 300 and the chamber 100 and between the pump 200 and the boiler 200, and according to the operation of the valve, the pump 300 moves to the boiler. Water can be selectively delivered to (200) and chamber 100.

Additionally, when the refrigerant is water, the tap and the chamber 100 may be piped so that water can be supplied directly from the tap separately from the water supplied to form high-pressure steam.

Meanwhile, if the refrigerant is air, it may be compressed air or cold air that has undergone heat exchange, but is not limited thereto. After the object to be sterilized contained in the chamber 100 is sterilized, refrigerant is supplied between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120, and the outer wall 120, which is heated together with the inner wall 110, is also cooled by the refrigerant, so that the chamber 100 As it cools quickly, the object to be sterilized is also effectively cooled.

In other words, the chamber 100 can be effectively cooled in a short time, and the time required to remove the sterilized object from the chamber 100 can be shortened, so a high-pressure steam sterilizer is used to sterilize the sterilized object. The total time that must be used can be reduced.

Meanwhile, the chamber 100 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 may have a circular cross section, or may have a polygonal shape such as a triangle or square. In addition, the cross-sections of the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 of the chamber 100 may not only have the same shape, but may also have different shapes.

For example, the inner wall 110 may have a circular cross section, and the outer wall 120 may have a polygonal cross section. In order to allow the refrigerant supplied between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 to move effectively along the inner wall 110, it is preferable that at least the inner wall 110 is formed in the shape of a cylinder with a circular cross-section, and more preferably, the inner wall ( Both 110) and the outer wall 120, that is, the entire chamber 100, may be formed in a cylindrical shape with a circular cross-section.

The chamber 100 formed in a cylindrical shape as described above is preferably arranged horizontally so that the longitudinal cross-section is circular, as shown in FIG. 2. In this case, the refrigerant supplied between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 flows downward along the curved surface. It can be easily moved, and when the length of the chamber 100 is formed to be longer than the circular diameter of the longitudinal cross-section, the refrigerant moves quickly along the outer peripheral surface of the chamber 100, allowing rapid cooling.

Meanwhile, the chamber 100 has an inlet 130 for supplying refrigerant between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120, and the refrigerant that passes between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 and cools the chamber 100 is discharged. An outlet 140 may be formed.

In the chamber 100, the inlet 130 is preferably provided at the top and the outlet 140 is provided at the bottom so that the refrigerant moves from the top to the bottom of the chamber 100.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, the inlet 130 is provided at the center of the uppermost chamber 100 in the longitudinal direction, so that the refrigerant moves toward the edge of the chamber 100 around the center and moves through the inner wall 110. Cooling can be achieved effectively by moving along the outer periphery of . This is more effective when one inlet 130 is provided in the chamber 100.

The inlet 130 and the outlet 140 may be provided as one as shown in FIG. 2, but may also be provided in multiple numbers to ensure more even and rapid cooling over the entire longitudinal direction of the chamber 100. there is.

Additionally, the inlet 130 is piped to the pump 300 or a water faucet, and the outlet 140 is piped to the recovery tank 400 so that refrigerant can be introduced and discharged.

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of a high-pressure steam sterilizer according to another embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 shows that the high-pressure steam sterilizer 1000' in the embodiment of Figure 1 further includes a heater 500. Since the chamber 100, boiler 200, pump 300, and recovery tank 400 are the same as the previous embodiment, redundant description will be omitted.

The heater 500 is a device that heats the chamber 100 to a temperature of sterilization conditions in advance. When using an electric heater, the heat from the heater may be applied to the object to be sterilized. In other words, damage to the object to be sterilized may occur due to excessively high heat. If the chamber 100 is not heated in advance, high-pressure steam supplied from the boiler 200 into the chamber 100 condenses in the chamber 100, causing a problem in which the pressure inside the chamber 100 decreases. Sterilization conditions are not reached until the temperature of the chamber 100 is the same as that of the supplied steam, which leads to an increase in the overall sterilization time.

The heater 500 provides high-temperature steam to the space between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 of the chamber 100 through the control valve B to adjust the chamber 100 to a temperature of sterilization conditions in advance.

The control valve B is a three-way valve disposed upstream of the inlet 130 and selectively provides cooling water or high-temperature steam to the inlet 130 under the control of a control unit (not shown). That is, in the sterilization preparation stage, the control valve (B) connects the heater 500 to the inlet 130. After sterilization is completed, the control valve (B) connects the water faucet to the inlet 130 to rapidly cool the chamber 100.

The heater 500 receives hot water heated to a certain temperature from the boiler, converts it into high-temperature steam, and supplies it to the chamber 100. At this time, the high temperature steam is not provided to the sterilization space of the chamber 100, but to the space between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120 of the chamber 100 through the inlet 130. The temperature of the wall of the chamber 100 is maintained equal to or higher than the temperature of the high-pressure steam provided into the chamber from the boiler 200 to prevent high-pressure steam from condensing inside the chamber 100 as much as possible.

According to one embodiment, the heater 500 includes an ultrasonic diaphragm 510, an oscillator 530, and a shielding plate 520.

The ultrasonic diaphragm 510 applies ultrasonic vibration to hot water at a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius or close thereto supplied from the boiler 200 and disperses it into fine water droplets. It adopts the humidification method of a humidifier and can convert liquid water into vapor with a small amount of energy applied.

Fine water droplets pass through the shielding plate 520 and are heated to over 100 degrees Celsius by the oscillator 530.

The oscillator 530 is a device that generates microwave electromagnetic waves and can cause resonance in water molecules to heat steam to more than 100 degrees Celsius even at normal pressure.

Since the shielding plate 520, which blocks the passage of microwaves, is disposed between the ultrasonic diaphragm 510 and the oscillator 530, the output energy of the oscillator 530 is directly applied to the fine water droplets, effectively generating high temperature steam. Additionally, the shielding plate 520 prevents the microwave electromagnetic waves generated by the oscillator 530 from damaging the ultrasonic pain relief plate 510.

In the upper space of the heater 500 where the oscillator 530 is disposed, the fine water droplet particles are heated to an appropriate temperature from 130 to 160 degrees Celsius, then pass through the control valve (B) and enter the chamber 100 through the inlet 130. A space is provided between the inner wall 110 and the outer wall 120. The inner wall 110 of the chamber 100 can be maintained at more than 130 degrees Celsius by high-temperature steam.

The embodiments of the present invention disclosed in the specification and drawings are merely provided as specific examples to easily explain the technical content of the present invention and to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein, other modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention can be implemented.

1000: High pressure steam sterilizer
100: Chamber 110: Inner wall
120: outer wall 130: inlet
140: outlet 200: boiler
300: Pump 400: Recovery container
500: Heater

Claims (5)

A chamber formed in a cylindrical shape, arranged horizontally so that the longitudinal cross-section is circular, and containing an object to be sterilized therein;
A boiler that supplies high-pressure steam into the chamber;
a recovery container for recovering water in which the vapor supplied to the chamber has condensed; and
It includes a control unit that monitors and controls the environment within the chamber,
The chamber is,
An inner wall where the object to be sterilized is accommodated therein;
An outer wall surrounding the inner wall and formed to be spaced a certain distance away from the inner wall;
An inlet disposed at the upper end of the chamber, supplying fluid between the inner wall and the outer wall; and
It is disposed at the upper end of the chamber and includes an outlet for discharging the fluid,
A three-way valve disposed upstream of the inlet, comprising a control valve that selectively provides cooling water or high-temperature steam to the inlet under the control of the control unit,
Further comprising a heater that provides high temperature steam to the space between the inner and outer walls of the chamber through the control valve,
The heater,
Converting hot water heated to a certain temperature from the boiler into high temperature steam and providing it,
An ultrasonic diaphragm that disperses the supplied high-temperature hot water into fine water droplets;
An oscillator that applies microwave electromagnetic waves to the fine water droplets dispersed by the ultrasonic diaphragm and heats them to a certain temperature; and
A high-pressure steam sterilizer comprising a shielding plate disposed between the ultrasonic diaphragm and the oscillator to prevent the microwave electromagnetic waves generated by the oscillator from being applied to the ultrasonic diaphragm. delete delete delete delete