TW201608181A - Air purifier and equipment having air purifying function - Google Patents

Abstract

To totally efficiently purify air in a room and prevent stagnation of contaminated air. An air purifier 1 includes a casing 2, an inlet 4, an outlet 5, air trunks 7A, 7B, a blower 6, a movable louver 9, a horizontal rotation mechanism 15, an external detection unit 16, contamination detection means 21, a control unit 23, and the like. The control unit 23 selects a first direction in areas A1 to A5 within a wind direction variable range based on indoor information including at least one of information on a person or an animal in the room and information on an air contamination source or an air contamination level. Then, an air purifying operation is performed for a set time t with a wind direction being directed in the first direction by the horizontal rotation mechanism 15. Next, a second direction different from the first direction is selected, and the air purifying operation is performed with the wind direction being changed to the second direction.

Description

Air cleaner and equipment machine with air purification function

The present invention relates to an air cleaner having a function of purifying a sucked air and purging it, and an equipment machine having an air purifying function.

For example, an air cleaner disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known in the past. In the prior art, the position of a person inside the room is detected, and the wind direction of the blown air is controlled so that, for example, air blown from the air cleaner does not blow to a person. In addition, when the person is located away from the air cleaner, the amount of air blown out is increased.

Furthermore, the Applicant pointed out that the documents which are included in the above-mentioned documents are related to the present case.

Advanced technical literature Patent literature

Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 5-93562

Patent Document 2: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. Hei 11-83098

Patent Document 3: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2-245212

In the above-described prior art, the wind direction is controlled such that the blown air does not blow to a person, or the amount of wind is increased so that the blown air reaches a position away from the air cleaner. However, if the air is not blown out in the direction of the person, the problem of the purification of the area in which the person is located is slowed down. On the other hand, if the air is blown toward the direction in which the person is present, the cleaning of the area where no one exists is slowed down, and it is difficult to lower the pollution level of the entire room. In particular, when air is continuously supplied only to a certain area, there is a problem that air (dirty) is precipitated in other areas.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an air cleaner and an equipment having an air cleaning function, which are capable of suppressing an unpleasant feeling to a user and efficiently purifying the entire indoor air. Suppresses the generation of dirty air precipitation sites.

An air cleaner according to the present invention includes: a casing having a suction port and an air outlet; and a blower that draws air from the room and blows the air from the air outlet; The suction port is cleaned by the inhaled air; the wind direction adjusting mechanism is configured such that the wind direction of the air blown out from the air outlet can be changed in the left and right direction within a preset range of the wind direction; the information acquisition device obtains the person or animal in the room Information of at least one of information on air pollution sources or pollution levels as indoor information; the control unit controls the wind direction adjustment mechanism based on the indoor information; the control unit includes: a first direction selection device based on The indoor information selects a first direction, which is a direction in which the air is first cleaned in the variable range of the wind direction, and a second direction selecting device selects the second direction in the wind direction. a direction in which the air is cleaned after the first direction in the variable range; and the cleaning control device performs the air cleaning operation only for a predetermined time while the wind direction is directed to the first direction, and then the wind direction is performed Instead, the air cleaning operation is performed in the second direction.

According to the present invention, the air cleaner can first purify the first direction with the first direction in which the air is cleaned. Further, after the air cleaning operation is performed in the first direction, the air can be cleaned in the second direction different from the direction. Thereby, the direction in which the high air cleaning effect is required is preferentially cleaned, and the indoor air is cleaned efficiently, and the position where the dirty air is deposited can be suppressed.

1‧‧‧Air Purifier

2‧‧‧Shell

2A‧‧‧ next door

3‧‧‧Base

4‧‧‧Inhalation

5,5A,5B‧‧‧Blowing

6‧‧‧Air blower

6A‧‧‧fan

6B‧‧‧Motor

7,7A, 7B‧‧‧ Wind Road

8‧‧‧Clean purification device

9‧‧‧ movable grid

10‧‧‧ grid drive unit

11‧‧‧Open variable mechanism

12‧‧‧Open drive department

13‧‧‧Rectifier mechanism (variable wind direction mechanism)

14‧‧‧Rectification drive unit (variable wind direction mechanism)

15‧‧‧ horizontal slewing mechanism (variable wind direction mechanism)

16‧‧‧External Detection Department (Information Detection Device)

17‧‧‧person detection device

20‧‧‧Detector slewing mechanism

21‧‧‧Contamination detection device (information detection device)

22‧‧‧Operation Department

23‧‧‧Control Department (memory device)

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an air cleaner according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the air cleaner in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of an essential part in the first diagram showing the operating states (a) and (b) of the movable grid and the rectifying mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a view showing the configuration of a control system of the air cleaner according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of an essential part in the first diagram of the operation state (a), (b), and (c) of the human detecting device.

Fig. 6 is an explanatory view showing an example of a variable range of the wind direction realized by the air cleaner.

Figure 7 is a view showing the directivity of the air cleaner of the first embodiment of the present invention. Characteristic line chart.

Fig. 8 is a flow chart showing the main routine of the wind direction control according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing a wind direction control subroutine according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a flow chart showing another specific example of the wind direction control according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a flow chart showing another specific example of the wind direction control according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Embodiment 1

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated. The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an air cleaner according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In addition, Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the air cleaner in Fig. 1 . As shown in these figures, the air cleaner 1 of the present embodiment includes a casing 2, a susceptor 3, a suction port 4, an air outlet 5, a blower 6, air paths 7A and 7B, a cleaning device 8, and a movable grid 9. The grid drive unit 10, the opening variable mechanism 11, the opening drive unit 12, the rectification mechanism 13, the rectification drive unit 14, the horizontal rotation mechanism 15, the external detection device 16, the pollution detection device 21, the control device 23, and the like.

The casing 2 is formed, for example, in the shape of a square shape having a substantially square shape, and is constituted by a vertically elongated tower-shaped casing extending in a direction perpendicular to the ground. In addition, the housing 2 is supported by the base 3 provided on the floor of the room to be rotatable in the horizontal direction. status. As shown in Fig. 2, in the internal space of the casing 2, in the space from the suction port 4 to the air outlet 5, the cleaning device 8, the blower 6, and the air passage 7 are disposed in order from the upstream to the downstream.

Further, in the present specification, among the side surface portions of the casing 2, a portion mainly disposed to face the indoor space is referred to as a front portion, and a portion facing the front portion is referred to as a rear portion. Further, in the horizontal direction, the direction in which the front portion and the rear portion are opposed is described as the front-rear direction, and the direction in which the front-rear direction is orthogonal is described as the left-right direction. The air cleaner 1 is installed, for example, at a position close to any one of the wall surfaces of the room, and is used in a state where the rear surface of the casing 2 faces the wall surface and the front portion of the casing 2 faces the indoor space.

The suction port 4 is an opening for sucking indoor air into the inside of the casing 2, and is provided, for example, at a front surface portion of the casing 2. The suction port 4 has an elongated opening shape extending in the vertical direction. The air outlet 5 is an opening for blowing air that has entered the inside of the casing 2 to the outside, and is constituted by, for example, two air outlets 5A and 5B that are opened to the upper surface portion of the casing 2. The two air outlets 5A and 5B extend side by side along the left and right sides of the casing 2. In the following description, the air blown from the air outlets 5 (the air outlets 5A, 5B) may be described as "blowing air." Further, in the present invention, the suction port 4 may be disposed on the back surface portion, the side surface portion, the lower surface portion, or the like of the casing 2, or the air outlet 5 may be disposed in the front surface portion, the side surface portion, or the like of the casing 2. Further, in the casing 2, only one air outlet 5 may be disposed, or three or more air outlets 5 may be disposed.

The blower 6 is a device that sucks air from the suction port 4 into the casing 2 and blows the air out of the air outlet 5. The blower 6 has a fan 6A composed of a centrifugal fan such as a swirling fan, and an electric motor 6B that rotates the fan 6A. fan The number of revolutions of 6A is controlled by the control device 23, and the amount of air blown out is changed corresponding to the number of revolutions. As shown in FIG. 2, in the inside of the casing 2, for example, two blowers 6 are disposed in a state in which the positions in the front-rear direction are shifted.

Inside the casing 2, an air passage 7 that connects the blower 6 and the blower outlet 5 is provided. The air passage 7 is a device that guides the air blown from the blower 6 to the air outlet 5. The air passage 7 is partitioned into a front air passage 7A and a rear air passage 7B by a partition wall 2A provided inside the casing 2. The two air passages 7A and 7B are arranged to extend in the vertical direction and are juxtaposed in the front-rear direction. The lower sides of the air passages 7A and 7B are respectively connected to different blowers 6, and the upper sides of the air passages 7A and 7B are connected to the blowers 5A and 5B, respectively. In other words, the air cleaner 1 includes a first air blowing system that passes from one of the air blowers 6 through the air path 7A and reaches the air outlet 5A, and a second air blowing system that passes from the other air blower 6 through the air path 7B and reaches the air outlet 5B. In these air supply systems, the air volume, wind direction and wind speed can be individually controlled.

The cleaning device 8 is a device for purifying the air taken in from the suction port 4, and is provided between, for example, the suction port 4 and the blower 6. The cleaning device 8 has a vertically elongated shape that extends in the vertical direction inside the casing 2. Here, the term "clear purification" means, for example, the removal of pollutants such as dust, smoke, pollen, viruses, molds, bacteria, allergens, and odor molecules floating in the air, specifically, It means the action of trapping these pollutants so that they do not activate, adsorb and decompose. The cleaning device 8 may be composed of the following machines or a combination of the following machines: a dust collecting filter, a deodorizing filter, an anti-fungal sterilizing filter, a voltage applying device, and the like. The dust collecting filter is a device for collecting dust in the air, and the deodorizing filter is a device for adsorbing the odor component, and the device for preventing the mold spore from being activated or killing the attached bacteria by the antifungal sterilizing filter. In addition, the voltage application device is by applying a high voltage A device that functions to remove, inactivate, kill, destroy, and decompose pollutants.

Further, in the first embodiment, a mechanism for capturing and removing contaminants inside the casing 2 is exemplified as the cleaning device 8. However, the cleaning apparatus of the present invention also includes means for exerting a cleaning effect on the outside of the casing 2 by releasing, for example, ions, water mist, or ultrasonic waves. Further, in the present invention, the installation place of the cleaning device is not limited to the inside of the casing 2. That is, the cleaning and purifying apparatus of the present invention may be configured such that ions or water mist are discharged to the outside of the casing 2 to fly to the target position along the airflow, thereby purifying the target position. Further, in the cleaning and purifying apparatus of the present invention, the photocatalyst may be applied to the surface of the casing 2, and the contaminated air at the target position may be guided to the vicinity of the casing 2 for purification. That is, the air cleaner according to the first embodiment focuses on improving the cleaning rate of the target position. Therefore, the content of the cleaning device 8 is not limited to a specific means as long as the cleaning speed of the target position can be increased by the operation control method or the like. However, the means for sucking the polluted air and treating it by a filter or the like is effective in ensuring that the polluted air and the cleaning device are in contact with each other. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the cleaning device 8 is used as the cleaning device.

Next, Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of an essential part in the first diagram showing the operating states (a) and (b) of the movable grid and the rectifying mechanism. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the movable grille 9 is a device that swings the wind direction of the blown air in the vertical direction, and one movable grille 9 is provided in each of the air outlets 5A and 5B of the casing 2. In detail, the movable grid 9 is formed of, for example, an elongated flat plate or the like extending in the left-right direction of the casing 2. Moreover, the base end sides of the movable grid 9 are respectively mounted by the grid drive unit 10 On the air outlets 5A and 5B. The grid drive unit 10 swings the two movable grids 9 individually in the vertical direction.

As shown in Fig. 2, the opening variable mechanism 11 is provided, for example, at a position opposed to the movable grid 9 on the front side in the front-rear direction, and cooperates with the movable grid 9 to change the opening area of the air outlet 5A. In addition, in the first drawing and the third drawing, the rectifying mechanism 13 to be described later is clearly shown, and therefore the illustration of the opening variable mechanism 11 is omitted. The rectifying mechanism 13 is a device that adjusts the wind direction in the left-right direction while maintaining the elevation angle of the wind set by the movable grille 9. As shown in the second and third figures, the rectifying mechanism 13 is formed, for example, in a substantially triangular shape (or a fan shape), and protrudes from the wind receiving surface side of each movable grille 9 and is disposed at intervals in the left-right direction. A rectifying mechanism 13. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b), each of the rectifying mechanisms 13 is swung in the left-right direction so that the wind direction of the blown air changes in the left-right direction corresponding to the swing angle.

Further, the rectifying mechanism 13 is swung by, for example, a rectifying drive unit 14 (see FIG. 4) provided on the movable grille plate 9. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the horizontal turning mechanism 15 is provided between the casing 2 and the susceptor 3, and the direction of the casing 2 and the air outlet 5 is changed in the horizontal direction on the susceptor 3. The horizontal turning mechanism 15 and the rectifying mechanism 13 and the rectifying drive unit 14 constitute a wind direction adjusting mechanism, and the wind direction of the blown air can be changed in the left and right direction within a predetermined variable range of the wind direction. The wind direction variable range will be described with reference to Fig. 6 which will be described later.

Further, as described above, in the first embodiment, the two air blowers 6 are arranged side by side in the vertical direction. According to this configuration, it is easier to form the air cleaner 1 into a vertically long tower type than an air cleaner that generates the same amount of air by a single blower 6. Thereby, the cross-sectional shape of the air cleaner 1 is made positive Square or round, it can make the installation area small. In particular, the square and circular cross-sectional shapes can reduce the installation area necessary for the horizontal rotation operation, and the most suitable shape when the horizontal rotation mechanism 15 is employed. Further, as will be described later, in the air cleaner 1 of the first embodiment, the control for changing the blowing direction in response to the position of the person or the dirt is performed. In this case, in the present invention, any method capable of changing the blowing direction can be used, but by using the horizontal turning mechanism 15, it is easy to visually confirm that the air cleaner 1 is oriented toward a person or a dirty direction. Therefore, it is possible to obtain an effect that the user actually feels the effect of the air cleaner 1.

Further, in the first embodiment, the air cleaner 1 is formed into a vertically long tower shape, and the air outlet 5 is formed to face the ceiling surface, whereby the airflow toward the obliquely upward direction can be easily formed. As a specific example, the table is a large object among the furniture placed in the center of the room. The table is designed to take into consideration the height of the person sitting down, and is generally designed to have a height of about 90 cm. In other words, when the position of the air outlet 5 of the air cleaner 1 in the height direction is low, even if the air is blown obliquely, the airflow may be blocked by furniture or the like, and the airflow toward the room may not be formed. In view of the possibility that the airflow may be blocked by the furniture, the blowing angle from the air outlet 5 to the obliquely upward direction is itself limited.

In addition, the elongated tower type has the advantage that the distance between the outlet 5 and the lowest point of the suction port 4 can be elongated. The air cleaner 1 of the first embodiment has the object of eliminating the temperature difference between the floor and the ceiling and suppressing the agitation. When the interval between the lowermost point of the air outlet 5 and the suction port 4 becomes small, the airflow from the air outlet 5 induces an air flow of the suction port 4, which may cause the polluted air that should be sucked by the suction port 4 to be blown out. Wind traction, making pollution empty The gas was blown away again. In addition, the external detecting portion 16 can be placed at a higher position by adopting a tower structure that can heighten the height. In other words, it is possible to detect a person without being affected by low furniture such as a chair or a television, and it is possible to suppress the occurrence of false detection.

Next, the control system of the air cleaner 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 4 . Fig. 4 is a view showing the configuration of a control system of the air cleaner according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The air cleaner 1 includes a detection system including an external detecting device 16 and a pollution detecting device 21, an operation unit 22 for operating the air cleaner 1, and a control device 23 for controlling an operation state of the air cleaner 1.

The external detecting device 16 is a device for detecting the indoor information of the room in which the air cleaner 1 is located, and is provided, for example, on the front upper side of the casing 2 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 . The external detecting device 16 has a person detecting device 17 that detects a person who is indoors. The person detecting device 17 can be constituted by, for example, an infrared ray detector, an image recognition detector, or a pyroelectric detector. Further, in the present invention, the human detecting device 17 may be constituted by another detector capable of detecting a person. Further, the external detecting device 16 may be a combination of the human detecting device 17 and another detector (not shown). The other detector is, for example, at least one of a dust detector, an odor detector, a dynamic detector, a distance detector, or an illuminance detector. In addition, it is not limited to a person, an animal, or the like, and a pet such as a dog or a cat can be detected.

Here, the dust detector is composed of a semiconductor element, an optical element, or the like, and detects the concentration of dust, smoke, pollen, and the like in the air. The odor detector is composed of a semiconductor element or a piezoelectric element, and detects the concentration of several gas components that generate odor. The distance detector is identified by, for example, an ultrasonic detector, a photodetector, and an image. A non-contact type detector such as a detector is used to detect the distance between the air cleaner 1 and the detected object by using sound waves or electromagnetic waves. The detected object includes indoor walls, ceilings, furniture, people, animals, and the like. The illuminance detector detects whether there are people and animals in the room, and whether there is any action or the like based on the change in illuminance.

Further, the person detecting device 17 is attached to the casing 2 by the detector turning mechanism 20. Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of an essential part in the first diagram of the operation state (a), (b), and (c) of the human detecting device. As shown in the figure, the direction of the person detecting device 17 is rotated in the horizontal direction (left-right direction) with respect to the casing 2 by the detector turning mechanism 20. Further, the detector slewing mechanism 20 may be configured such that the other detectors provided in the external detecting unit 16 also rotate together. Further, when the image recognition detector, the array type detector, or the like, which can acquire two-dimensional image data, is used as the human detection device 17, the detector rotation mechanism 20 may not be used.

On the other hand, the pollution detecting device 21 shown in Fig. 4 is a device that detects the amount of the pollutants in the air taken in by the suction port 4 as a level of pollution, and is disposed in the cleansing direction in the air flow direction. The upstream side of the device 8. The contamination detecting device 21 is composed of a detector which will be described later or a combination of detectors to be described later, such as a dust detector, a gas detector, an odor detector, and the like. The air cleaner 1 blows the air in a specific direction, and the contamination detecting device 21 detects the amount of the pollutants in the air flowing back from the direction, thereby detecting the level of contamination in a specific direction. Further, the external detecting device 16 and the pollution detecting device 21 constitute an information acquiring device that detects indoor information including at least one of a distance from a ceiling or a wall surface of the room to the air cleaner 1 and a degree of contamination of the indoor air. Specific examples. In addition, the purpose of detecting the pollution level is here, but the contamination detecting device 21 also includes, for example, the position of the conditioning field. The position of the door or the like, the movement of the person, the time point at which the contamination is generated, or the detector accumulation mechanism at a position where it is easy to occur. At this time, the detection information of the person detecting device 17 or the like may be added to improve the accuracy.

Further, in the present invention, the external detecting portion 16 or the pollution detecting device 21 does not have to be assembled in the air cleaner 1. When other air conditioners and the like have such a detection function, the detection information can be obtained from the air conditioner or the like and operated. In this case, an information transmission device such as infrared rays, light, sound waves, electromagnetic waves, or radio waves may be installed as an alternative means of the detecting device. These information transmission devices not only reduce the installation space, but also have the advantage of easily maintaining synergistic functions with other home appliances. In addition, the information of the external detecting unit 16 or the pollution detecting device 21 can be transmitted to other home electric appliances, and the versatility of the air cleaner 1 can be improved.

The control unit 23 includes a calculation processing device, an input/output port, a memory circuit, and the like which are not shown. As shown in Fig. 4, the detector system including the external detecting device 16 and the pollution detecting device 21 is connected to the input side of the control device 23. An actuator including the blower 6, the purge device 8, the grid drive unit 10, the opening drive unit 12, the rectification drive unit 14, the horizontal swing mechanism 15, the detector swing mechanism 20, and the like is connected to the output side of the control unit 23. The control device 23 drives the actuator in accordance with the output of the sensing system, thereby causing the air cleaner 1 to operate.

(basic air clean action)

Next, the basic operation of the air cleaner 1 will be described. When the air cleaner 1 is operated, the blower 6 and the purge device 8 are driven by the control device 23. Thereby, air is sucked into the inside of the casing 2 from the suction port 4, and the air is purified by the cleaning device 8. Then, the purified air is passed through the blower 6 and the air passage 7A and 7B reaches the air outlets 5A and 5B, and is blown to the outside from the air outlets 5A and 5B. At this time, the control device 23 drives the grid drive unit 10, the opening drive unit 12, the rectification drive unit 14, and the horizontal swing mechanism 15 based on the detection result of the detector system.

Thereby, the wind direction angle (elevation angle) of the air blown in the vertical direction can be controlled in accordance with the swing angle of the movable grid 9. Further, the angle (rotation angle) of the wind direction in the horizontal direction is controlled by the horizontal turning mechanism 15 and the rectifying mechanism 13. Further, when the swing angle of the movable grid 9 and the opening variable mechanism 11 is changed, the flow path area of the blown air is changed, whereby the wind speed of the blown air can be controlled. Furthermore, the control unit 23 changes the number of revolutions of the blower 6 and controls the amount of air blown out. Thereby, the air purified by the air cleaner is blown out from the air outlets 5A and 5B to the respective parts in the room. The blown air is sucked into the suction port 4 together with the pollutants in the air after being circulated indoors. By repeating this cycle action, the air in the room is cleaned.

(wind direction control)

Next, the wind direction control of the blown air performed by the control device 23 will be described. In the wind direction control, first, the direction in which the air should be purged first (the first direction) is selected within the preset variable range of the wind direction. Further, in a state where the wind direction is directed to the first direction, the air cleaning operation is performed for a predetermined time t to be described later. Next, the direction (second direction) in which the air should be cleaned after the first direction is selected. Further, the wind direction is changed to the second direction, and the air cleaning operation is performed in the second direction.

Here, the variable range of the wind direction is defined as the angle of rotation of the wind direction that can be realized by the horizontal turning mechanism 15. Fig. 6 is an explanatory view showing an example of a variable range of the wind direction realized by the air cleaner. As shown in this figure, in the present embodiment, for example, the variable range of the wind direction is divided into five areas A1 to A5, in the area unit. The selection of the first direction and the second direction and the acquisition of the above indoor information are performed. In this way, by dividing the variable range of the wind direction into the plurality of areas A1 to A5, the control of the wind direction and the acquisition of the indoor information can be easily performed. Further, as will be described later, the number of occurrences of pollution in the past or the number of air blows can be easily managed. Furthermore, it is possible to obtain a range in which purification can be more concentrated by experiments, so that the loss can be reduced by matching the selected regions.

D1 to D5 in Fig. 6 illustrate wind directions corresponding to the regions A1 to A5, respectively. That is, when the area A1 is selected, the wind direction D1 is selected, and the air is blown out from the air outlet 5 toward the wind direction D1. Further, when the area A2 is selected, the wind direction D2 is selected such that the air is blown toward the wind direction D2. The same is true when the area A3~A5 is selected, that is, the wind direction D3~D5 is selected respectively. Here, it is not necessary for D2 to D5 to blow air toward the center of the region like D1. This is because the cleaning speed in the center portion of the air blowing direction is not necessarily the fastest, and may be slightly shifted to the left and right with the air blowing direction. In addition, the range in which the air can be purged more quickly than the surrounding is also different. In other words, the wind direction does not necessarily coincide with the target area, and it is also thought that the direction of the wind direction in the left-right direction is changed.

Further, L shown in Fig. 6 indicates the center in the left-right direction of the variable range of the wind direction. In the following description, the regions A2 and A4 located on the left side of the center L in the variable wind range may be referred to as the left region AL, and the regions A3 and A5 located on the right side of the center L may be referred to as the right region AR. Further, each of the areas A1 to A5 has the same central angle centered on the air cleaner 1. In the present embodiment, for example, a case where five areas A1 to A5 are provided is exemplified. However, in the present invention, the variable range of the wind direction can be divided into an arbitrary number of areas as needed.

In the wind direction control, first, the air cleaning operation is performed, and the casing 2 is rotated by the horizontal turning mechanism 15, thereby detecting the pollution level of the air in each of the areas A1 to A5. Further, the external detecting unit 16 detects whether or not there is a person or a number of people in each of the areas A1 to A5, and detects the distance from the air cleaner 1 to the person for each area. In this case, the direction of the external detecting unit 16 can be rotated by the detector rotating mechanism 20. The control unit 23 selects the first direction and the second direction based on the indoor information.

(first direction)

The area with the largest number of people in each of the areas A1 to A5 or the area with the highest air pollution level is selected as the first direction. Specifically, when there is a person in the variable range of the wind direction and there is only one area where the person exists, the area is selected as the first direction. That is, for example, when only the area A4 exists, the first direction is set to the area A4 (wind direction D4). In addition, when there is a person in the plural area, the area with the largest number of people is selected as the first direction.

On the other hand, when no one exists in the variable range of the wind direction, the region having the highest air pollution level is selected as the first direction. That is, for example, when no one exists in the areas A1 to A5, and the pollution level of the area A5 is the highest, the first direction is set in the area A5 (wind direction D5). Further, in the present invention, it is also possible to always select a region in which a person exists (a region having the largest number of people) as the first direction. In addition, the region with the highest pollution level may always be selected as the first direction.

According to the above control, the air cleaner 1 can firstly purify the area with the most people or the area with the highest air pollution level. Thereby, for example, when the air cleaner 1 is initially started, the maximum air cleaning effect can be exhibited. In addition, after the first direction wins the air clean action, it can be different from The second direction in the first direction purifies the air. Thereby, it is possible to efficiently purify the entire indoor air, and it is possible to suppress the generation of the dirty air.

In addition, according to the above control, when there is a person in the room, the area of the person is first cleaned first, and the comfort of the user can be quickly ensured. On the other hand, if no one exists, the area with the highest level of pollution is preferentially cleaned, and the cleaning rate of the room can be improved. As described above, it is possible to appropriately select an area where cleaning is preferentially performed in accordance with the situation in the room, and it is possible to enhance the environment of the room and the user.

The predetermined time t during which the air cleaning operation is performed in the first direction is set based on, for example, actual use conditions, actual measurement results, indoor information, and the like. As a specific example, the time t can be set based on a factor to be described later: a time when the completion of the air cleaning purification is predicted, or a time when it is determined that the air cleaning operation is not continued. Further, the time t may be set in accordance with, for example, the presence or absence of a person in the first direction, the number of people, the level of air pollution in the first direction, and the like. Further, in the air cleaning operation in the first direction, when the person in the first direction is absent or the pollution level in the direction is lowered to a level that does not need to be cleaned, it is determined that the time t has elapsed at this point, and the movement is shifted to the set The next action. In this case, the next operation may be, for example, toward the second direction, temporarily reducing the amount of air, temporarily stopping the blowing, and the like.

According to the above control, the time t for purifying the air in the first direction can be appropriately set in accordance with the situation in the room or the like. That is, for example, when the dirt in the first direction is cleaned, the wind direction is quickly switched to the second direction. Thereby, the entire interior can be cleaned on average. Further, when the dirt in the first direction has not been cleaned, the air blowing in the first direction can be continued until the cleaning is completed. Thereby, the spread of dirt can be continuously suppressed.

(2nd direction)

In the second direction, for example, it is preferable to select the region on the side opposite to the first direction in the left-right direction. That is, when the first direction is selected in the area of either the left area AL or the right area AR, the second direction is selected in the other area. Furthermore, it is preferable to select the region farthest from the first direction in the second direction. Specifically, when the first direction is the area A2, the area A3 or A5 (area A5 is preferable) is selected as the second direction. Further, for example, when the first direction is the area A3, the area A2 or A4 (area A4 is preferable) is selected as the second direction. Similarly, when the first direction is the area A4 or A, the other area is selected as the second direction.

By this control, the first direction and the second direction can be evenly distributed on the left and right sides of the variable range of the wind direction. Thereby, the precipitation of dirty air can be effectively eliminated. Therefore, the cleaning efficiency of the air in the entire room can be improved, and the entire air can be quickly purified. In particular, the above effect can be remarkably exhibited by setting the second direction to a direction as far as possible from the first direction in the left-right direction.

Further, in the wind direction control, for example, when a person exists in a plurality of areas and the area having the largest number of people is selected as the first direction, the area having the second largest number of people can be selected as the second direction. According to this control, the number of people is relatively large, so the area where the purification is required is high, and the air is cleaned. Thereby, the person in the room can effectively feel the cleansing of the air and can make the air cleaner 1 operate efficiently. In addition, air is blown toward a person's area, and airflow from a person's area to another area can be generated. As a result, even if the pollution level in other areas is high, it is possible to suppress the pollutants from reaching the surroundings of other people from other areas.

In addition, in the wind direction control, for example, the air pollution level in the plurality of areas exceeds the allowable limit, and the area with the highest pollution level is selected as the first In the 1 direction, the area where the pollution level is the second highest can be selected as the second direction. The allowable limit is preset as a reference value for the level of pollution that should be used to purify the air. According to this control, it is possible to purify the air from the region where the pollution level is high in order. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the spread of the pollutants from the region where the pollution level is high to other regions. Therefore, other areas are also indirectly cleaned, and the entire indoor air can be efficiently cleaned.

Further, when the pollution level of the air in the plural direction exceeds the allowable limit and the direction in which the pollution level is the highest is selected as the first direction, the second direction may be selected based on the number of past pollution occurrences. Specifically, the control unit 23 stores in advance the number of times in each of the areas where contamination has exceeded the allowable limit in the past. Further, the direction in which the past occurrence of pollution is the most is selected as the second direction. Further, in the present invention, for each area, the number of air blows that have been blown to the specific area in the past is stored, and the direction in which the past number of blows is the most can be selected as the second direction.

According to the above control, it is possible to estimate a region where the contamination is likely to occur based on the number of past pollution occurrences or the number of air blows, and select the estimated region as the second direction. Thereby, the second direction can be appropriately selected based on the past pollution occurrence situation. In addition, the area prone to soiling may be, for example, a kitchen periphery, a ventilation fan, a doorway where a person enters and exits, an opened window, or the like. Further, the control unit 23 constitutes an example of a memory device that stores the number of occurrences of pollution or the number of air blows in each area in the past.

Further, at least one of the first direction and the second direction can be selected by a process to be described later. First, in the case where the distance from the air cleaner 1 to the air blowing position is long, it is difficult to purify the air. Therefore, based on the area In the process of selecting the area (direction) in the number of persons in the domain, it is preferable to select one of the two area areas having the same number of people, and it is preferable to select an area far from the air cleaner 1 to the person. Thereby, it is possible to preferentially carry out decontamination from the periphery of a person located at a position where cleaning is difficult.

In addition, in the two areas, when the number of people and the distance from the air cleaner 1 to the person are equal, the area can be selected according to the preset priority order. In this case, as described above, for example, it is possible to configure, for example, a region in which the number of pollution occurrences or the number of air blows in the past is increased, and the priority is higher. The area where the number of pollution occurrences or the number of air blows is large may be, for example, a place where people such as televisions tend to gather, or a place to dine. The number of people in such places is likely to increase when the air is being supplied, so the user's comfort can be improved by prioritizing the cleaning.

In addition, the air cleaner 1 can have a function of detecting a furniture arrangement or the like by the external detecting unit 16, for example. Further, in the wind direction control, a region having a large number of furniture among the respective areas A1 to A5 is selected as the first direction (or the second direction). In the area where there are many furniture, there may be errors in the detection results of the number of people and the level of pollution of the air. Actively purifying such areas, it is possible to detect errors in response.

Further, in the case where, for example, a person exists in a plurality of areas adjacent to each other, a region located in the middle portion in the left-right direction among the respective regions may be selected as the first direction (or the second direction). As a specific example, in the sixth drawing, when there is a person in the areas A1, A2, and A4, the area A2 in the center portion is set to the first direction regardless of the distance from the person. Thereby, the areas A1 and A4 on both sides can also be indirectly cleaned. Therefore, when someone in the plural area exists, it can be flat. All areas are cleaned up promptly and quickly.

Fig. 7 is a characteristic diagram showing the directivity of the air cleaner according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, the front side indicates, for example, a direction perpendicular to the front center portion of the air cleaner housing, and the off angle is a central angle deviating from the front surface. Further, the broken line in Fig. 7 indicates the average value of the air purification performance from the front surface to the left and right sides of the casing as a whole. In general, the air purifier has an average air purification performance from the front of the casing to the left and right sides thereof. On the other hand, the air cleaner 1 of the present embodiment has a configuration in which the air purification performance on the front side is higher than the left and right sides of the casing 2, and has high directivity with respect to the air blowing direction. Thereby, when the air cleaner 1 is directed in a specific direction, the air in this direction can be efficiently cleaned.

Further, in Fig. 7, the characteristic line having the highest air purification performance at the front position is exemplified, but as described above, the characteristic line may be slightly shifted to the left or right direction in accordance with the direction in which it is directed or the direction in which the air is blown. In this case, the tendency of the characteristic line is also the same, that is, it has a pattern shape that is convex upward, and tends to decrease as it moves toward both ends. In addition, such a tendency may not be suitable for use in a wall or an obstacle near a room. However, this characteristic can be controlled by the vertical angle and the left and right angle of the movable grid 9. Specifically, for example, in the up and down direction, if the control is such that the movable grid 9 (ie, the wind direction angle) is forward and the wind speed is increased, the convex shape of the graph in FIG. 7 is closer to a straight line, and is presented. The tendency to clean the room more easily. Further, according to the wind direction control in the left and right direction, it is possible to adjust the degree of deviation of the convex portion of the pattern from the front side to the left and right. In other words, in the area A1 to A5, when there is a place where the cleaning is desired, or when two adjacent areas are supported within the possible range, the upper and lower sides of the movable grid 9 can be used. The left and right movements are used for fine adjustment. These fine adjustment functions can be incorporated into the control.

Further, since the air cleaner 1 has two blowers 6, and the respective blowers 6 can be individually controlled, the convex shape of the pattern can be made close to a straight line, and the air volume can be suppressed from being lowered. In order to make the convex shape of the pattern close to a straight line, it is preferable to individually set the vertical direction angle of the movable grid 9. However, in this case, the areas of the air outlet 5A and the air outlet 5B are set to be different. This will cause the pressure loss to change. However, if the blower 6 can be separately provided and the air volume is controlled for each of the air outlets 5, the balance of the air volume can be maintained. In addition, conversely, it is also possible to intentionally change the air volume balance or change the circulation mode of the indoor airflow.

[To achieve the specific processing of the first embodiment]

Next, specific processing for realizing the above control will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. First, Fig. 8 is a flow chart showing the main routine of the wind direction control according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The procedure shown in this figure is repeated during the operation of the air cleaner 1. In the routine shown in Fig. 8, when the operation is started in step S100, first, in step S101, the direction of the casing 2 is returned to the initial position (center L) in the left-right direction. Then, in step S102, the person detecting device 17 is caused to rotate in the left-right direction within the variable range of the wind direction, thereby searching for the person in the room, and detecting the presence and the number of people for each of the areas A1 to A5. In this case, it is preferable that the direction of the person detecting device 17 is rotated by the detector slewing mechanism 20. Thereby, in step S102, since the direction of the casing 2 is maintained at the initial position, the wind direction can be quickly changed to either direction after the search is completed.

Next, in step S103, based on the detection result of the person detecting means 17, it is judged whether or not there is a person in any one area. When this judgment is not true, The process proceeds to step S104, and processing when no one is present is performed (see Fig. 9 which will be described later). On the other hand, when the determination of step S103 is established, the process proceeds to step S105.

In step S105, the region having the largest number of people in the wind direction variable range is selected as the first direction, and the wind direction is directed to the first direction. Then, in step S106, in the first direction, air is blown during the predetermined time t described above, and the air cleaning operation is performed. Next, in step S107, a region distant from the region selected as the first direction is selected as the second direction. In this process, the second direction is a region on the opposite side to the direction selected in step S106 in the left-right direction with reference to the center L of the wind direction variable range. Then, in step S108, in a state where the wind direction is directed in the second direction, for example, air is blown for a predetermined time t to perform an air cleaning operation.

Next, in step S109, it is judged whether or not there is an area which is the same distance as the area selected as the first direction and which has not yet performed the air cleaning operation. This determination processing assumes that the central area A1 (refer to Fig. 6) is selected as the first direction. Specifically, for example, the areas A4 and A5 located at the left and right ends of the variable range of the wind direction are the same as the distance of the area A1. Therefore, if the air cleaning operation has not been performed in any of the areas A4 and A5, the determination of step S109 is established. In this case, the process proceeds to step S110, and a region in which the air cleaning operation has not been performed among the regions A4 and A5 is selected as the second direction.

Then, in step S111, air is blown for a predetermined time t in the selected area, and the air cleaning operation is performed. Further, when the air cleaning operation has not been performed in the areas A4 and A5, the areas A4 and A5 are sequentially selected as the second direction, and the air cleaning operation is performed in each area. In this case, the area The priority order of A4 and A5 is as described above, and for example, a region having a large distance between the region and the person, the level of pollution, the number of occurrences of pollution, or the number of blows may be prioritized. In addition, it is also possible to use an area in which a large arrangement of furniture or the like is given as a priority. Further, an area on the opposite side to the area selected in step S107 in the left-right direction may be used as a priority.

If the determination in step S109 is not satisfied, and if the processes of steps S110 and S111 have been completed in all of the remaining areas, the process returns to step S101. Thereby, as long as the operation of the air cleaner 1 is not stopped, the processes of steps S101 to S111 are repeatedly executed.

Further, the processing of steps S109 to S111 may be executed only when an odd number of areas are set within the variable range of the wind direction. That is, when an even number of regions are set in the variable range of the wind direction, the processing of steps S109 to S111 may be omitted. That is, in the present embodiment, the method of distinguishing regions is not particularly important. In the present embodiment, the focus is on "the area in which the air cleaning effect is difficult to obtain due to the region away from the first air blowing (the first direction), and the region in which the air cleaning operation has not been performed is selected as the second direction". Alternatively, the above various selection methods may be combined to sequentially select the plural direction as the second direction.

Next, referring to Fig. 9, the processing when there is no person in the room will be described. Fig. 9 is a flow chart showing a wind direction control subroutine according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In the program shown in this figure, first, in step S200, the direction of the casing 2 is returned to the initial position in the left-right direction. Then, in step S201, the casing 2 is rotated in the left-right direction within the variable range of the wind direction to search for dirt in the room, and the level of contamination of the air is detected for each of the areas A1 to A5.

Next, in step S202, it is determined whether or not there is a region that is heavily soiled. Specifically, in this determination process, it is judged whether or not the pollution level of each area exceeds the allowable limit. When the determination in step S202 is not satisfied, the process proceeds to step S203, and for example, air is blown toward the center of the room, and the entire room is uniformly cleaned. On the other hand, when the determination of step S202 is established, the process proceeds to step S204.

In step S204, the region having the highest pollution level in the variable range of the wind direction is selected as the first direction, and the wind direction is directed to the first direction. Then, in step S205, air is blown in the first direction for a predetermined time t, and the air cleaning operation is performed. Next, in step S206, a region distant from the region selected as the first direction is selected as the second direction. Then, in step S207, in a state where the wind direction is directed in the second direction, for example, air is blown for a predetermined time t, and the air cleaning operation is performed. The processing of steps S206 and S207 is the same as the processing of steps S107 and S108 in Fig. 8 . Further, in steps S208 to S210, the same processing as steps S109 to S111 described above is executed.

As described above, according to the procedures of Figs. 8 and 9, it is possible to realize wind direction control for each person in the room and no one. When there is no one indoors, it is possible to directly remove contaminants from areas where contamination is likely to occur, and it is possible to suppress the spread of contaminants in other areas and to purify them at the same time. Thereby, it is possible to have a comfortable environment before the person enters the room.

Further, in the present embodiment, the ninth drawing is exemplified as a subroutine. However, in the present invention, the ninth drawing may be used as the main routine to execute the wind direction control. In other words, it is possible to first select the first direction and the second direction based on the pollution level of each region. However, even if the person is far away from the air cleaner 1, it can be detected immediately, but the level of pollution is detected based on the inhaled air. Therefore, pollution It takes time to detect the level. Therefore, the detection of the pollution level is used as the wind direction control of the main program, and the responsiveness of the air cleaning operation may be lowered. Therefore, as exemplified in Figs. 8 and 9, the wind direction control using the human detection as the main program and the detection of the pollution level as the subroutine is preferable.

Further, in the present invention, if, for example, the level of pollution is learned and the function of the source is estimated, it is possible to improve the responsiveness to the level of pollution. Therefore, if the functions of the main program, the subroutine, and the like are switched in response to the situation, the effect can be more effective. In particular, cooking operations, door switches, and the like are factors that can be estimated to some extent by human detection and learning functions. Therefore, if it is determined that the contamination is generated from the cooking spot or the door direction when the operation is estimated, that is, the switching process is performed to forcibly change the wind direction, it is possible to suppress the spread of the dirt and to exhibit a better effect.

Further, in the present invention, for example, the wind direction may be swung in the left-right direction, and the entire air in the room may be stirred to perform cleaning while cleaning the sedimentation position. Thereby, the number of operations (the number of cleanings) of the air cleaner 1 can be reduced. In addition, by the swing of the wind direction, the feeling that the person is blown can be suppressed, so that the amount of wind can be increased. Further, air can be blown from the central portion to the left and right sides with reference to the central portion of the room where the human is likely to exist.

Further, when the air cleaner 1 in the room is disposed, for example, when air is blown to the areas A4 and A5, the blown air may be blown to the wall surface. In this case, in the present invention, for example, the size of the room and the position of the wall surface can be detected by the external detecting unit 16, and whether or not the areas A4 and A5 are effective areas can be determined based on the detection result. Thereby, for example, when the area A4 has a wall surface, the area A4 is excluded from the wind direction control target, and it is possible to prevent the air from being blown out in a useless direction. In addition, in the present invention In the meantime, the effective area may be determined based on, for example, the position and movement of the person. Specifically, an area that has not been detected during a whole day or the like is determined to have an invalid area such as a wall surface or an obstacle, and is excluded from the wind direction control target.

Next, other specific examples of the wind direction control will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. Figs. 10 and 11 are flowcharts showing another specific example of the wind direction control according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In detail, in Fig. 10, first, in step S105, the region having the largest number of people is selected as the first direction. Further, in step S300, the region having the second largest number of people is selected as the second direction. On the other hand, in Fig. 11, first, in step S204, the region having the highest pollution level is selected as the first direction. Further, in step S400, the region having the second most pollution level is selected as the second direction. The control shown in Figs. 10 and 11 can be combined with the controls shown in Figs. 8 and 9. In addition, the control shown in Fig. 11 can also be used as the main program.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, in the programs shown in Figs. 8 to 11, steps S105 and S204 show specific examples of the first direction selecting means. Further, steps S107, S110, S206, S209, S300, and S400 indicate specific examples of the second direction selecting device, and steps S106, S108, S111, S205, S207, S210, S301, and S401 indicate specific examples of the cleaning control device.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, the air cleaner 1 for general household use will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be applied to various equipment machines having the same air cleaning function as the air cleaner 1.

1‧‧‧Air Purifier

2‧‧‧Shell

3‧‧‧Base

5‧‧‧Blowing out

9‧‧‧ movable grid

15‧‧‧ horizontal slewing mechanism (variable wind direction mechanism)

16‧‧‧External Detection Department (Information Detection Device)

Claims (12)

An air cleaner comprising: a casing having an air suction port and a blow outlet; a blower that draws air from the room from the suction port and blows the air from the air outlet; and the purifying device from the suction port The inhaled air is cleaned; the wind direction adjusting mechanism is configured such that the wind direction of the air blown out from the air outlet can be changed in the left and right direction within a preset variable range of the wind direction; the information obtaining device obtains information about the person or the animal in the room And information on at least one of information on air pollution sources or pollution levels as indoor information; the control unit controls the wind direction adjustment mechanism based on the indoor information; the control unit includes: a first direction selection device based on the indoor The information selects a first direction, which is a direction in which the air should be cleaned first in the variable range of the wind direction; and a second direction selecting device that selects the second direction in the variable range of the wind direction a direction in which the air should be cleaned after the first direction; and the cleaning control device is configured to direct the wind direction toward the first direction Action performed within a clean air only at a predetermined time under the state, then after said wind changed toward the second direction and performing clean air operation. The air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the first direction selecting means selects a direction in which the number of persons in the variable range of the wind direction is the largest, or the level of pollution in the variable range of the wind direction is the highest. The direction is the first direction described above. The air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the first direction selecting device has a direction in which the number of selected persons is the most in the first direction, in the wind direction when the wind direction variable range exists. In the case where no one exists in the variable range, the direction in which the pollution level of the air is the highest is selected as the first direction. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second direction selecting means selects the range of the left half and the right half of the wind direction variable range. In the first direction, the second direction is selected in the other range. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the second direction selecting means is provided when a plurality of directions exist and a direction in which the number of persons is the largest is selected as the first direction The direction in which the number of the second person is selected is the second direction. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when the pollution level of the air in the plural direction exceeds the allowable limit and the direction in which the pollution level is the highest is selected as the first direction, the The two-direction selecting means selects the direction in which the pollution level is the second highest as the second direction. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein when the pollution level of the air in the plural direction exceeds the allowable limit and the direction in which the pollution level is the highest is selected as the first direction, the The two-direction selecting device selects the direction in which the contamination exceeding the allowable limit most frequently occurs in the past as the second direction. An air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, When the first direction selecting means and the second direction selecting means select one of the two directions in which the number of persons is equal, the direction from the air cleaner to the person is selected to be far. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the time for performing the air cleaning operation in the first direction is based on the indoor information setting. The air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the wind direction variable range is divided into a plurality of regions, and the first direction and the second direction are selected according to the area unit and the indoor The acquisition of information. The air purifier according to claim 10, further comprising: a memory device, for each of the above regions, memorizing the number of air blows to the respective regions; wherein, when the number of people to be selected or the level of pollution is equal When one of the two areas is selected, an area with a large number of past air blows is selected. An equipment machine having an air cleaning function, comprising: a casing having a suction port and an air outlet; and a blower for drawing air from the air inlet and blowing the air from the air outlet; The air taken in from the suction port is cleaned; the wind direction adjusting mechanism is configured such that the wind direction of the air blown out from the air outlet can be changed in the left-right direction within a preset range of the wind direction; the information acquisition device acquires the person about the room Information on at least one of animal information and information on air pollution sources or pollution levels as indoor information; The control unit controls the wind direction adjustment mechanism based on the indoor information; the control unit includes: a first direction selection device that selects a first direction based on the indoor information, and the air should be first made in the variable range of the wind direction a second direction selecting device that selects a second direction that is a direction in which the air should be cleaned after the first direction in the variable range of the wind direction; and the clean control device turns the wind direction toward In the state of the first direction described above, the air cleaning operation is performed only for a predetermined period of time, and then the air direction is changed to the second direction and the air cleaning operation is performed.