NZ570587A

NZ570587A - Dehumidifier

Info

Publication number: NZ570587A
Application number: NZ570587A
Authority: NZ
Inventors: Yousuke Kuge; Hideo Shibata
Original assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corp; Mitsubishi Electric Home Appl
Priority date: 2008-02-15
Filing date: 2008-08-18
Publication date: 2009-10-30
Also published as: CN102032623B; TWI374243B; HK1134948A1; TW201241377A; CN101509682B; HK1152097A1; CN102032623A; HK1152098A1; JP2009192165A; TWI484128B; TW200935005A; CN102032622B; CN102032622A; CN101509682A

Abstract

A dehumidifier is disclosed. The dehumidifier comprises a room air inlet and a processed air outlet, a mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processed air within a blow range, a means for dehumidifying or heating the intake air to decrease relative humidity, temperature detecting means for detecting room temperature, humidity detecting means for detecting humidity, and control means for automatically starting or stopping a dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature and humidity. The dehumidifier is operable to change the blow range of the processed air during the dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature or humidity. The dehumidifier also includes a mechanism operable to reciprocate to blow processed air over a whole operable blow range and one or a plurality of modes in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range that is narrower than the whole operable blow range.

Description

570587 *10056153210* 7 o 5 8 7 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 No: Date: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION DEHUMIDIFIER We, MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION, a corporation organized under the laws of Japan of 7-3, Marunouchi 2-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8310, Japan; and MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC HOME APPLIANCE CO., LTD., a corporation, organized under the laws of Japan of 1728-1, Omaeda, Fukaya-shi, Saitama 369-1295, Japan, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: (followed by page la) intellectual property office of n.z. 1 8 AUG 2008 received 570587 [Name of Document] SPECIFICATION [Title of the Invention] DEHUKIDIFIER [Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to dehumidifiers equipped with a dehumidifying or drying device, and more specifically, it relates to control of the motion of the air outlet, the shape of the air outlet, and control of dehumidifying operation.

[Background Art]

[0002] Some conventional dehumidifiers remove moisture from the air in a room according to a low-humidity maintaining time determined from the temperature and relative humidity of the room air to thereby control the humidity in the room (for example, refer to Patent Document 1). Furthermore, there are references to retarding mold growth by controlling ambient relative humidity within the range from 40% to 60% (for example, refer to Patent Documents 2 and 3).

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-248880 (Abstract, Fig. 6) [Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 7-275329 (page 3) [Patent Document 3] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-208401 (page 3) la 570587 [Disclosure of the Invention]

[0003] Conventional dehumidifiers determine a low-humidity maintaining time from the temperature and relative humidity of room air. However, water droplets are left for a long time in mold-growing environment, such as a bathroom, in which water droplets tend to be collected on the floor. Therefore, even if the relative humidity of air decreases, some portions are left in a condition of high humidity, so that generation of mold cannot be prevented sufficiently by the conventional dehumidifiers.

An embodiment of the invention seeks to provide a dehumidifier capable of sufficiently preventing generation of mold. Additionally and/or alternatively, an embodiment of the invention seeks to provide the public with a useful choice.

A dehumidifier according to an aspect of the invention comprises: a room air inlet and a processed air' outlet; a mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processed air within a blow range; a function of dehumidifying or heating intake air to decrease relative humidity; temperature detecting means for detecting room temperature; humidity detecting means for detecting humidity; and control means for automatically starting or stopping a dehumidifying operation according to the room

[0004]

[0005] 2 570587 temperature and humidity; wherein the dehumidifier is operable to change the blow range of the processed air during operation according to the room temperature or humidity, and the dehumidifier is operable in a combination of a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a whole operable blow range and one or a plurality of modes in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range that is narrower than the whole operable blow range. [0005a] The term "comprising" as used in this specification means "consisting at least in part of". When interpreting each statement in this specification that includes the term "comprising", features other than that or those prefaced by the term may also be present. Related terms such as "comprise" and "comprises" are to be.interpreted in the same manner. [0005b] A dehumidifier according to a further aspect of the present invention comprises a room air inlet and a processed air outlet, a mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processed air within a blow range, a function of dehumidifying or heating intake air to decrease relative humidity, temperature detecting means for detecting room temperature, humidity detecting means for detecting humidity, and control means for automatically starting or stopping a dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature and humidity, wherein the dehumidifier has a function that dehumidifying operation is continued until the humidity falls below a predetermined humidity, the dehumidifying operation is further continued so as to maintain the humidity lower than the predetermined humidity for a predetermined (followed by page 3a) i jul 21 ricii 570587 period of time, and thereafter the dehumidifying operation is automatically stopped, the dehumidifier is operable to change the processed air blow range during the dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature or humidity, and the dehumidifier is operable in a combination of a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a whole operable blow range and one or a plurality of modes in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range that is narrower than the whole operable blow range.

[0006] According to an embodiment of the invention, the air blow range is switched according to the room temperature or humidity to change the blowing direction of dehumidified air (processed air), so that the processed air is sent in the direction to be dried according to the dry states of the room air, the ceiling, walls, and floor, which change with time, thereby drying the interior of the room in a short time. Therefore, a dehumidifier capable of sufficiently preventing the generation of mold can be provided.

[Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention]

[0007] Fig. 1 is an external front view of a dehumidifier with a cold blast function (hereinafter, referred to as a dehumidifier) according to an embodiment of the invention. Fig. 2 is an external back view of the same. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of the dehumidifier, with the front and side exterior members removed. - 3a -!followed by page 4) - I JUL 2009 / 570587 . . [ 0C08 ] , iv.-. ■ . ■ .

As shown in Fig. 1, the dehumidifier 1 has a front air outlet 10 at the upper front (near side), whose left half is a cold air outlet 10a and right half is a warm air outlet 10b. On the back of the front air outlet 10 are provided an operating section 12a and a display section 12b. The front air outlet 10 has an automatically openable louver 13 that covers it. The louver 13 is rotated to adjust the opening area of the front air outlet 10, thereby changing the blow range (for further details, see Fig. 7 and other drawings).

[0009] As shown in Fig. 2, the dehumidifier 1 has a back air outlet 14, a cold-air-side inlet 15 and a warm-air-side inlet 16.

[0010] As shown in Fig. 3, the dehumidifier 1 includes an evaporator 20, a compressor 21, a condenser 22, and an expansion valve (not shown), which are connected together using a refrigerant pipe (not shown) to construct a refrigerating cycle (see Fig. 6). The evaporator 20, which is opposed to the cold-air-side inlet 15, cools and dehumidifies the room air taken in through the cold-air-side inlet 15. The compressor 21 disposed on the bottom of the dehumidifier 1 compresses the refrigerant sent from the evaporator 20 and sends it to the condenser 22. The 570587 condenser 22, which is opposed, to the warm-air-side inlet 16, heats the room; air; taken in through the: warm-iair-side inlet 16. A water tank 23.is disposed under the condenser 22. The water tank 23 stores moisture which is generated at the time when the room air is dehumidified by the evaporator 20. A casing 25 having a built-in evaporator-side blower fan (hereinafter, referred to as a blower fan) 24 (see Fig. 4) is disposed on near side of the water tank 23. The blower fan 24 takes in room air through the cold-air-side inlet 15 and the evaporator 20, and then sends it to the cold air outlet 10a using the casing 25 as an air duct (see Fig. 4). A condenser-side blower fan (hereinafter, referred to as a blower fan) 26, disposed on near side of the condenser 22, takes in room air through the warm-air-side inlet 16 and the condenser 22, and sends it to the warm air outlet 10b (see Fig. 5). The cold air duct and the warm air duct are thus juxtaposed.

[0011] Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view of the cold air duct of the dehumidifier 1. The casing 25 has, in addition to the blower fan 24, a built-in blower-fan drive motor (hereinafter, referred to as a drive motor) 27 for driving the blower fan 24. When the drive motor 27 is driven, the blower fan 24 is rotated to take in the room air through the cold-air-side inlet 15 and the evaporator 20, and sends the 570587 air cooled and dehumidified by the evaporator 20 to the cold ait :oiitlet 10a' using the ca&ifig 25 ■ as! afir ait: ductv■ '

[0012] Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of the warm air duct of the dehumidifier 1. A blower-fan drive motor (hereinafter, referred to as a drive motor) 28 is disposed on the back of the blower fan 26. When the drive motor 2 8 is driven, the blower fan 26 is rotated to take in the room air through the warm-air-side inlet 16 and the condenser 22, and sends the air heated by the condenser 22 to the warm air outlet 10b.

[0013] The dehumidifier 1 has an air-duct switching mechanism (not shown) built in the upper part thereof. The air-duct switching mechanism is appropriately operated manually or automatically to switch the air duct, so that when blowing only cold air through the cold air outlet 1.0a, the back air outlet 14 works as a warm-air discharge port, and when blowing only warm air through the warm air outlet 10b, it works as a cold-air discharge port. In normal dehumidifying operation, both of cold air and warm air are blown through the front air outlet 10.

[0014] Fig. 6 is a block diagram of the control system of the dehumidifier 1. 570587 The dehumidifier 1 is equipped with a ;control section ; 30 formed of a microcomputer and other components. The input of the control section 30, connected to the operating section 12a, a temperature detecting means 31 for detecting room temperature, and a humidity sensing means 32 for detecting room humidity, executes various operations based on an operating signal from the operating section 12a, room temperature, and room humidity. The temperature sensing means 31 and the humidity sensing means 32 are mounted to appropriate portions of the dehumidifier 1 main body. The output of the control section 30 is connected to the refrigerating cycle 33 including the compressor 21, the drive motor 27, the drive motor 28, a louver drive motor 34(see Fig. 7), and the display section 12b.

[0015] Fig. 7 is an explanatory drawing.of the appearance of a single louver 13 and the mounting position of the louver drive motor 34. The louver 13 is rotated about an axis in its longitudinal direction by the louver drive motor 34 in the range shown in Figs. 8 and 9 to change the range of air blow freely. Fig. 8 shows an example of a wide air blow range (110 degrees), while Fig. 9 shows an example of a front air blow range (60 degrees).

[0016] As described above, the blowing direction of 570587 dehumidified air can be changed freely by changing the air blow range by the rotation of the louver 13. The operation mode can also be selected freely; for example, the louver 13 may be fixed in one direction or cyclically reciprocated within a fixed angle. In general, when the louver 13 is reciprocated between the upper limit and the lower limit, set by the control section, several times per one minute, the room air is agitated effectively to increase a dehumidifying effect. For drying clothes, setting the air blow range at a wide angle (110 degrees) allows dehumidified air to be applied evenly to clothes hung in a wide range, thus decreasing drying time. For drying a floor, setting air blow range to the front (60 degrees) allows dehumidified air to be applied directly to the floor, thus decreasing drying time.

[0017] Next, as a main use of the dehumidifier 1 of this embodiment, an antimold operation for preventing mold from growing, particularly, in wet areas such as bathrooms, will be described.

[0018] Fig. 10 is a flowchart for the control operation. Referring to the flowchart, the operation will be described.

When an attachment plug la (see Fig. 2) of the dehumidifier 1 is inserted into a socket, the operation is 570587 started; the ^ temperature 'detecting means 3,1 and the humidity detecting means 32 detect the room temperature and the humidity, respectively, and the control section 30 takes in the detected temperature and humidity information. The control section 30 determines whether the driving switch (not shown) of the operating section 12a has been turned on (S13). When it is determined that the driving switch has been turned on, the control section 30 determines what operation mode has been selected (S14). For example, when an operation mode other than an antimold operation has been set (S15), the control section 30 operates for the operation mode (S16). When an antimold operation mode is set (S17), the control section 30 determines whether the room temperature is higher than 20°C (S18). When the room temperature is higher than 20°C, the shortest operating time is set to four hours and the antimold operation is started (S19). When the room temperature is not higher than 20°C (20°C or lower), the shortest operating times is set to six hours, and the antimold operation is started (S20). The antimold operation may be performed using either the cold air through the evaporator 2 0 or the warm air through the condenser 22 or both of them,

[0019] The control section 30 then determines whether the humidity is lower than 50% (S21). When the humidity is not 570587 lower than 50% (50% or higher)/ th® .control section 30 sets; the swing angle of the louver 13 to a wide angle (110 degrees, .• see Fig. 8) , and; drives the louver drive motor 34 (S22). In contrast, when the humidity is lower than 50% (less than 50%), the control section 30 sets the swing angle of the louver 13 to the front (60 degrees, see Fig. 9), and drives the louver drive motor 34 (S23).

[0020] Next, the control section 30 determines whether both the conditions that the elapsed time after the humidity becomes lower than 50% is longer than four hours and that the elapsed time after starting the operation is longer than the shortest operating time are achieved (S24). When both conditions are not achieved, the control section 30 returns to the above-described process (S21) , and repeats the processes (S21) to (S24), wherein when the conditions are achieved, the control section 30 stops the operation (S25).

[0021] Fig. 11 is a timing chart indicative of how the humidity has changed by the control process of Fig. 10. In the case of an antimold operation for preventing generation of mold in a high-humidity space such as a bathroom, the relative humidity of a bathroom and a dressing room after bathing often becomes higher than 80%. If the operation is started in such a state, the louver 13 swings (reciprocates) 570587 at a wide angle (110 degrees) (Fig. 8) to agitate the room air, thereby dehumidifying it efficiently and to apply : dehumidifying air onto the ceiling and the walls, thereby removing the water droplets adhered to the ceiling and the walls. When the humidity decreases with time to less than 50%, the louver 13 swings at the front (60 degrees) (Fig. 9) to change the air blow range to a range close to the floor, thereby drying the floor. When the humidity is maintained below 50% for four hours, and the operating time exceeds the shortest operating time (for example, four hours), the antimold operation is stopped.

[0022] Fig. 12 shows the result of comparison of mold growth rates, that is, the lengths of mold hyphae at the time when spores are exposed to different atmospheres for a specified time. The comparison shows that, for high humidity, the operation of maintaining a relative humidity of 50% or lower for at least four hours once a day can keep the mold growth rate below about one fifth of that at the time when water droplets are left, for example, on a bathroom floor.

[0023] The above description shows an example in which humidity is used as a reference to switch the swing angle of the louver 13 from a wide angle (110 degrees) to the front (60 degrees). However, it may be switched with reference to 570587 room, temperature in place of humidity. For example, if room temperature is high, the swing angle1 is switched as with the case of humidity, on the assumption that humidity is low.

The swing angle of the louver 13 may be switched from a wide angle (110 degrees) to the front (60 degrees) at a predetermined operating time, in place of set humidity.

Although the above description shows an example in which the swing angle of the louver 13 has two settings, the air blow range may be set in inches so as to dry each of the ceiling, walls, and floor.

Although the above description shows an example in which the swing angle of the louver 13 is switched at humidity less than 50% (S21), the same advantages can be given even with any humidity less than 60%.

Although the above description shows an example in which humidity less than 50% is maintained for four hours or more (S24), the humidity may be set to any humidity less than 60% and the operating time may be set to three hours or more.

For dehumidifiers with a dehumidifying capacity of 10 litters a day, the best shortest operating time is four hours and six hours as described above (S19 and S20). However, it may not be limited to those but may be set appropriately according to the dehumidifying capacity and the volume of air blown from the dehumidifier. 570587 . . Although the, shortest operating timt of the above example has two settings (four hours and six hours), it may-have any two or more nuirber of settings corresponding to room temperature and may be switched according to the room temperature.

Refrigerating dehumidifiers, as in this embodiment, having the function of separately blowing two kinds of air, cold air through an evaporator and warm air through a condenser may switch the air blow range, in combination with switching between the cold air outlet 10a and the warm air outlet 10b. This allows warm air to be blown onto the floor in the latter half of the operation (in the example of Fig. 10, the operation at a humidity less than 50%), thereby accelerating the evaporation of water droplets.

The means for changing the air blow range may not be limited to changing the operation angle of the louver 13 but may be switching to a downward air vent provided in the main body of the dehumidifier 1.

The system for dehumidification of the dehumidifier may not be limited to a vapor compression system using a chlorofluorocarbon but may be any system such as a desiccant system using a moisture absorbing element, such as a zeolite element, or a system using a Peltier element. The invention may also be applied to apparatuses with the function of decreasing relative humidity, such as warm-air furnaces with 570587 a heater such as an electric heater (a ceramic heater etc.)...

[0024] The mechanism for changing the blow range of dehumidified air (processed air) may not be limited to the form of the louver 13 shown in Fig. 7. The shape and its related forms may be modified appropriately, which will be described by way of example with reference to Figs. 13 to 16.

[0025] Figs. 13 to 15 are explanatory drawings showing an example in which a slidable baffle plate 40 with the same curved surface as the louver 13 is provided on the top of the louver 13. The baffle plate 40 normally overlaps with the louver 13 to constitute an aesthetic surface of the dehumidifier 1. When the baffle plate 40 is slid forward of the louver 13, dehumidified air reaches the floor more, as shown in Fig. 16, even if the driving quantity of the louver A drive motor 34 is the same as that of Fig. 9.

[0026] The baffle plate 40 may be of a manually fixed type whereby the user selects the position of the baffle plate 40 before starting the operation, as shown in the drawings, or alternatively, may be of an automatic type (not shown).

This structure increases the range of air blow toward the floor by moving the baffle plate 40 at the same time when the air blow range is changed, allowing drying in a shorter 570587 time.. The shape of the baffle plate 40 is act-limited: to:::: the shape :along the aesthetic surface but may be designed to give a higher priority to increasing the,air blow range.

[0027] The dehumidifier of the embodiment with the above structure offers the following advantages.

[0028] The dehumidifier according to the embodiment includes the room-air inlets (the cold-air-side inlet 15 and the warm-air-side inlet 16) and the processed-air outlet (the front air outlet 10), the mechanism for automatically changing the blowing direction of processed air ..(the louver 13), the function of dehumidifying or heating the intake air to decrease the relative humidity (the evaporator 20, the condenser 22 and so on) , the temperature detecting means 31 for detecting the room temperature, the humidity detecting means 32 for detecting the humidity, and the control section 30 for automatically starting or stopping the operation according to the room temperature and the humidity. The dehumidifier changes the processed-air blow range during operation according to the room temperature and humidity. This allows air to be sent in the direction of drying according to the room air which changes with time and the drying state of the ceiling, walls, and floor, and thus the interior of the room can be dried in a short time. For 570587 example, this dehumidifier sends dehumidified dry air to mold-growing places such as a floor where water droplets tend to be collected, to accelerate evaporation of the water droplets, thereby decreasing the humidity of air, and removes water droplets to dry the places in a short time, thus providing a high antimold effect.

[0029] The dehumidifier according to the embodiment is configured to switch the air blow range according to the room temperature or humidity, maintain humidity lower than a predetermined value for a predetermined time after reaching the predetermined value, and thereafter automatically stop the dehumidifying operation. Thus, the dehumidifier maintains the air at low humidity necessary for drying the interior of the room and slowing down the growing rate of the mold hyphae, and thereafter stops the operation. This eliminates the need for unnecessary extra dehumidifying operation.

[0030] For the processed-air blow range (the opening of the front air outlet 10), the dehumidifier adopts a structure in which a mechanism (for example, the louver 13) for changing the processed-air blow range during dehumidifying operation can appropriately switch the range to reciprocation of the whole blow range, operating ranges narrower than the whole 570587 range, such: as a rangefor the .ceiling, the rflepr, or so on. This allows air to be sent inan;appropriate direction according to the condition of the interior of the room which changes with time during the dehumidifying operation, thus allowing the interior to be dried in a short time.

[0031] Furthermore, the processed-air blow range of the mechanism (for example, the louver 13) is set to the whole blow range (Fig. 8) and the range close to the floor (see Fig. 9). When air is blown to the whole blow range, the room air is agitated greatly to prevent ununiformity of temperature and humidity depending on the location in the room, and thus the temperature and humidity are substantially made uniform to thereby enhance the drying efficiency, and the high-speed air is blown at a wide angle toward the ceiling and the walls to accelerate heat exchange and evaporation in. the. vicinity of the ceiling and the walls. When the air blow range is changed to the direction of the floor, the air can be focused onto the floor where water droplets tend to be collected more than on the ceiling and the walls, thus allowing sufficient drying.

[0032] At the start of the dehumidifying operation, the humidity of the room air is decreased and air is sent toward the ceiling and the walls from which water droplets tend to 570587 drop so that dehumidification and removal of water droplets are conducted with high efficiency. After the-humidity falls below the set humidity or after a predetermined' time has passed, there is no need to agitate the room air widely because the relative humidity in the air has decreased; therefore, the air blow range is then changed to the floor on which water droplets are more prone to be collected than on the ceiling and the walls, to dry the floor sufficiently, thereby reducing drying time.

[0033] Furthermore, the dehumidifier has, as means for changing the air blow range more greatly, a structure in which the shape of the air outlet formed of the front air outlet 10 and the louver 13 is changed manually or automatically (see Fig. 16 and other drawings); and either the upper end or the lower end of the air blow range or both of them are expanded, with the axis fixed, so that an air-blow range according to uses can be provided by freely changing the shape of the air outlet manually or automatically according to the direction of drying and the shape of the room.

[0034] Furthermore, the dehumidifier has, as means for changing the direction of air blow from the air outlet, a structure in which the plate-like member (see Fig. 13 and 570587 other drawings) along the aesthetic surface can be moved. Accordingly, before the operation, there is no uncomfortable feeling as an aesthetic component, and during operation in which the air blow range is expanded, the component is moved along the aesthetic surface. Thus, the air blow range can be changed without spoiling the aesthetic design of the product.

[0035] The means for changing the shape of the air outlet are shaped so that the range of air blow to the floor can be expanded. This allows air to be sent to the floor close to the main body on near side, where conventional dehumidifiers cannot send air. This eliminates the need for adjusting the installation position of the dehumidifier 1 to the direction of the floor to be dried, thus allowing operation even in a narrow place.

[0036] Since the shape of the outlet is changed automatically according to a predetermined temperature, humidity, or elapsed operating time, appropriate operation according to room environment can be performed without the need for user's manual adjustment.

[0037] The predetermined value of relative humidity at the time when the air blow range is to be switched, is set at 570587 less than 60%, and after drying the room air, the ceiling, f and the walls, processed air with a relative humidity of less than 60% is intensively sent onto the floor. This prevents the growth of mold on the floor where water droplets tend to be collected and mold is easily generated.

[0038] Furthermore, after the humidity falls below the predetermined relative humidity of 60%, it is maintained for longer than three hours, and the operation is automatically stopped after maintaining it for the set time. This provides a power saving and ease-of-use dehumidifier capable of preventing the growth of mold in the minimum dehumidifying operation time without continuously maintaining low-humidity atmosphere.

[0039] In a dehumidifying operation for places where condensation or water droplets are prone to develop, setting of the minimum operating time brings about a drying effect irrespective of environment without the need for the user to adjust the operating time,

[0040] The minimum operating time has several settings according to room temperature. The settings are switched according to room temperature, so that an operation suitable for the room temperature can be performed irrespective of 570587 environment without the need for the user to adjust the operating time, thus allowing more stable drying effect.

[0041] The minimum operating time for low room temperatures is set to be longer than for high room temperatures. This provides sufficient drying effect even at low room temperatures.

[0042] The minimum operating time is set to four hours for a room temperature of 2 0°C or more, and to six hours for a room temperature of less than 20°C. This allows, for living rooms and bathrooms of ordinary houses, most of water droplets to be dried, thus offering sufficient drying effect. [Brief Description of the Drawings]

[0043] [Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is an external (front) view of a dehximidi f i er .

[Fig. 2] Fig. 2 is an external (back) view of the dehumidifier.

[Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the basic structure of the dehumidifier.

[Fig. 4] Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view of a cold-air-side (evaporator-side) duct of the dehumidifier.

[Fig. 5] Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of a warm-air-side (condenser-side) duct of the dehumidifier. 570587 [Fig. 6] Fig. 6 is a block diagram of the control system of the^dehumidifier [Fig. 7] Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the mechanism of an air outlet.

[Fig. 8] Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram showing an operation range (air blow range) and its upper and lower limit positions at the time when the mechanism reciprocates over a whole movable range of the air outlet.

[Fig. 9] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram showing an operation range (air blow range) and its upper and lower limit positions at the time when the mechanism reciprocates over a range close to a floor in the movable range of the air outlet.

[Fig. 10] Fig. 10 is a flowchart for an operation control of the embodiment. control of the embodiment.

[Fig. 12] Fig. 12 is a diagram showing the correlation between relative humidity and growth of mold.

[Fig. 13] Fig. 13 is a schematic diagram of a baffle plate in a normal operation.

[Fig. 14] Fig. 14 is a schematic diagram of the baffle plate in a moved state.

[Fig. 15] Fig. 15 is a cross sectional view of the front air outlet, with the baffle plate moved to a position to 570587 guide air toward the floor.

[Fig. 16] Fig. 16 is a schematic diagram of the air blow range of the baffie:plate. ; [Reference Numerals]

[0044] 1: dehumidifier, 10: front air outlet, 10a: cold air outlet, 10b: warm air outlet, 12a: operating section, 12b: display section, 13: louver, 14: back air outlet, 15: cold-air-side inlet, 16: warm-air-side inlet, 20: evaporator, 21: compressor, 22: condenser, 23: water tank, 24: blower fan, 25: casing, 26: blower fan, 27: drive motor, 28: drive motor, 30: control section, 31: temperature detecting means, 32: humidity detecting means, 33: refrigerating cycle, 34: louver drive motor, 40: baffle plate 570587

Claims

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

[Claim 1] A dehumidifier comprising: a room air inlet and a processed air outlet; a mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processed air within a blow range; a function of dehumidifying or heating intake air to decrease relative humidity; temperature detecting means for detecting room temperature; humidity detecting means for detecting humidity; and control means for automatically starting or stopping a dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature and humidity; wherein the dehumidifier is operable to change the blow range of the processed air during the dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature or humidity, and the dehumidifier is operable in a combination of a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a whole operable blow range and one or a plurality of modes in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range that is narrower than the whole operable blow range.
[Claim 2]
A dehumidifier comprising: a room air inlet and a processed air outlet; a mechanism for changing the blowing direction of the processed air within a blow range; a function of dehumidifying or heating intake air to decrease relative humidity; - 24 - I / -1 jul m
* I;570587;temperature detecting means for detecting room temperature;;humidity detecting means for detecting humidity;;and control means for automatically starting or stopping a dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature and humidity;;wherein the dehumidifier has a function that dehumidifying operation is continued until the humidity falls below a predetermined humidity, the dehumidifying operation is further continued so as to maintain the humidity lower than the predetermined humidity for a predetermined period of time, and thereafter the dehumidifying operation is automatically stopped,;the dehumidifier is operable to change the processed air blow range during the dehumidifying operation according to the room temperature or humidity, and the dehumidifier is operable in a combination of a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a whole operable blow range and one or a plurality of modes in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range that is narrower than the whole operable blow range.;[Claim 3];The dehumidifier according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the one or a plurality of modes includes a;570587;mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range narrower than the whole operable blow range and close to the floor of a room.;[Claim 4];The dehumidifier according to Claim 3 when dependent on Claim 2, wherein at the start of the dehumidifying operation, the dehumidifier is set to operate in the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over the whole operable blow range and, after the humidity falls below the predetermined humidity, the dehumidifier is switched to operate in the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range narrower than the whole operable blow range and close to the floor of a room.;[
Claim 5];The dehumidifier according to Claim 3 when dependent on Claim 2, wherein at the start of the dehumidifying operation, the dehumidifier is set to operate in the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range facing the ceiling or the walls and,;after the humidity falls below the predetermined humidity, the dehumidifier is switched to operate in the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range narrower than the;26;570587;whole operable blow range and close to the floor of the room.;[
Claim 6];The dehumidifier according to Claim 3, wherein at the start of the dehumidifying operation, the dehumidifier is set to operate in the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over the whole operable blow range and, after an operating time has passed a predetermined time, the dehumidifier is switched to the mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range narrower than the whole operable blow range and close to the floor of the room.;[
Claim 7];The dehumidifier according to Claim 3, wherein at the start of the dehumidifying operation, the dehumidifier is set to operate in a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range facing the ceiling or the walls and, after an operating time has passed a predetermined time, the dehumidifier is switched to operate in a mode in which the mechanism reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range close to the floor of a room.;[
Claim 8];A dehumidifier according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 comprising:;- 27 -;570587;a mechanism, provided at the processed air outlet, for changing upper and lower limit positions of the air blow range;;wherein the mechanism for changing the upper and lower limit positions of the air blow range has a driving mechanism for automatically changing the upper and lower limit positions according to a predetermined room temperature, relative humidity, or operating time.;[
Claim 9];The dehumidifier according to Claim 8, wherein the mechanism for changing the upper and lower limit positions of the air blow range is a mechanism in which a baffle plate is movable relative to the aesthetic surface of a product.;[
Claim 10];The dehumidifier according to Claim 8 or Claim 9, wherein the mechanism for changing the upper and lower limit positions of the air blow range is a mechanism in which the lower limit position is set so as to guide air closer to the floor.;[
Claim 11];The dehumidifier according to Claim 2, wherein after the start of the dehumidifying operation, the air blow range is changed after the humidity falls;/ ~ * M 2009 I lDr-«^ / 570587 below a predetermined value lower than a relative humidity of 60%.
[Claim 12] The dehumidifier according to Claim 2 or Claim 11/ wherein after the start of the dehumidifying operation, the air blow range is changed after the humidity falls below a predetermined value lower than a relative humidity of 60%, and the humidity less than the relative humidity of 60% is maintained for longer than three hours.
[Claim 13] The dehumidifier according to any one of Claims 2, 11 or 12, wherein after the start of the dehumidifying operation, the air blow range is changed after the humidity falls below a predetermined value lower than a relative humidity of 60%,and the humidity less than the relative humidity of 60% is maintained for longer than three hours, and thereafter the dehumidifying operation is automatically stopped.
[Claim 14] The dehumidifier according to Claim.3, or claim 12 or Claim 13 when dependent on Claim 3, wherein at the start of the dehumidifying operation, the dehumidifier is set to operate in the mode in which the mechanism for changing the processed air blowing direction reciprocates to blow processed air over the 2005910 l.doc intellectual property office of n.z. 29 2 2 SEP 2009 receive 570587 whole operable blow range and, after the humidity falls below a predetermined value lower than the relative humidity of 60%, the dehumidifier is switched to operate in the mode in which the mechanism for changing the processed air blowing direction reciprocates to blow processed air over a blow range narrower than the whole operable blow range and closer to the floor of a room, and the humidity less than the relative humidity of 60% is maintained for longer than three hours, and thereafter the d eh umiLdifyxng operation is automatically stopped.
[Claim 15] The dehumidifier according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the mechanism automatically changes the blowing direction of the processed air, and the dehumidifier has an operation mode having a shortest dehumidifying operation time setting.
[Claim 16] The dehumidifier according to Claim 15, wherein the operation mode has a plurality of shortest dehumidifying operation time settings according to the range of room temperature.
[Claim 17] The dehumidifier according to Claim 16, wherein the shortest dehumidifying operation time for low 2005910 l.doc 30 - ID I- ^ « » 570587 temperatures is set longer than for normal temperature.
[Claim 18] The dehumidifier according to Claim 17, wherein the shortest dehumidifying operating time is, for a room temperature of 20°C or higher, set to four hours, and for a room temperature of less than 20°C, set to six hours.
[Claim 19] The dehumidifier according to Claim 1 or 2, substantially as herein described with reference to any embodiment disclosed.
[Claim 20] A dehumidifier, substantially as herein described with reference to any embodiment shown in the accompanying drawings. MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATION AND MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC HOME APPLIANCE CO., LTD. By t :horised agents A J Per: 2005910 1.doc 31