WO2007071917A1

WO2007071917A1 - Hand dryer

Info

Publication number: WO2007071917A1
Application number: PCT/GB2006/004585
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kenneth Geoffrey Broughton
Original assignee: Karn Ltd
Priority date: 2005-12-23
Filing date: 2006-12-08
Publication date: 2007-06-28
Also published as: GB0526300D0

Abstract

A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer (1) has a base unit (2) and an air dispensing unit (3). The dispensing unit has left and right duct mouldings (11, 12) which are clipped together. The inside surface of each is formed with two channels a (14, 15), which in combination with the complementary channels of the other moulding define heated air ducts for smoothly leading air from the outlet (7) of the base unit to nozzles (16) of the dispensing unit. The dispensing unit is shaped generally with two horn (17, 18), each having one of the nozzles at its distal end. Within the span of the horns, facing mouldings (19, 20) are fitted. These have apertures (21) at the nozzles and fins (22) for turning the direction of the air from being essentially longitudinal of the horns to being inwards directed to impinge on hands held between the horns for drying. At the inner ends of the horns and the mouldings 19,20, a hand presence sensor (23) is provided. The right hand duct moulding (12) has a passageway (23') for leads between the sensor (23) and control circuitry in the base unit. It should be noted that the two ducts are separated right at the outlet from the base unit, by a duct divider wall (26).

Description

HAND DRYER

The present invention relates to a blown air hand dryer.

In our patent application No. 2,412,863 (Our Prior Application), we described a "Through-Panel" hand dryer, namely one intended to be mounted in a panel at an aperture therein, the dryer comprising:

• a base unit to be mounted below or behind a panel at the aperture, the base unit having: • an air blower and an air heater,

• an air inlet for leading ambient air from below or behind the panel to the air blower,

• a base outlet for directing heated air from the heater to above or in front of the panel and • means for securing the base unit to the panel at the aperture; and

• an air dispensing unit having:

• a heated air receiving duct arranged in the form of a stem extending away from the base outlet,

• means for attachment of the air dispensing unit to the panel or the base unit and

• a nozzle at the distal end of the stem arranged to direct heated air at least partially downwards for hand drying.

The preferred dryer of Our Prior Application includes a "Dual-Outlet" feature, namely a second, lower heated-air nozzle in the air dispensing unit in communication with the heated-air-receiving duct and arranged for directing heated air upwards onto the user's hands from below, the air dispensing unit being adapted to divide the heated air between the distal end nozzle and the second nozzle.

The object of the present invention is to provide an improved Dual-Outlet,

Through-Panel hand dryer having such a second, lower heated-air nozzle. According to the invention there is provided a Dual-Outlet, Through-Panel hand dryer comprising:

• two separate ducts for leading heated air from the base unit to the nozzles:

• one duct leading to one nozzle and • the other duct leading to the other nozzle.

Whilst it is envisaged that the air dispensing unit could be hollow, within the separate ducts being provided as hoses with the unit, in the preferred embodiment, the separate ducts are formed as recesses inside two duct injection mouldings, which are clipped together to form the air dispensing unit.

Provision of such moulded ducts enables them to be smoothly shaped to avoid noise inducing features.

Again it can be envisaged that the air flow for the two ducts could be separated in the base unit; however, preferably the division is made at the air inlet to the dispensing unit from the base unit.

Preferably air directing fins are provided at the nozzles. Conveniently, these are moulded as part of a pair of opposed lining mouldings facing each other on opposed horns of the dispensing unit. The lining mouldings line the region between the horns and in which the users hand are placed to be dried. Whilst these moulding themselves could bound part of the separate ducts, in the preferred embodiment, except at the nozzles, the duct mouldings fully define the ducts inside the lining moulds.

Conveniently the horns are symmetrical and the lining mouldings are identical. They can abut at their proximal ends, but are conveniently separated by a hand presence sensor.

To help understanding of the invention, a specific embodiment thereof will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hand dryer according to the invention Figure 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the hand dryer; Figure 3 is a cross-sectional front view of the hand dryer; and Figure 4 is perspective view of a v ariant of the hand dryer of Figure 1.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a Dual-Outlet, Through-Panel hand dryer 1, having a base unit 2 and an air dispensing unit 3. The base unit has a flange 4 which abuts a counter 5 and via which the unit is located. The base unit itself is essentially as described with respect to Figure 4 of Our Prior Patent Application and as such will not be further described here. The air dispensing unit 3 has a flange 6 complementary with the flange 4. They are provided with co-operating bayonet fitting features (not shown), whereby air dispensing units having differing design features can be interchangeably fitted to the one base unit.

The dispensing unit has left and right duct mouldings 11,12 which can be clipped together with conventional injection moulding features, glued together or be welded together. The inside surface of each is formed with two channels 14,15, which in combination with the complementary channels of the other moulding define heated air ducts for smoothly leading air from the outlet 7 of the base unit to nozzles 16 of the dispensing unit.

The dispensing unit is shaped generally with two horn 17,18, each having one of the nozzles at its distal end. Within the span of the horns, facing mouldings 19,20 are fitted. These have apertures 21 at the nozzles and fins 22 for turning the direction of the air from being essentially longitudinal of the horns to being inwards directed to impinge on hands held between the horns for drying. Whilst, as shown in Figure 1, the top horn has close to a half-circle of smooth circular curvature and the bottom horn has less that a quarter circle, their sides against which the facing mouldings abut are symmetrical, whereby the facing mouldings themselves are identical. At their inner ends, a hand presence sensor 23 is provided. The right hand duct moulding 12 has a passageway 23 ' for leads between the sensor 23 and control circuitry in the base unit. The lower horn 18 has a drain hole 24 and a weir 25 for allowing water dripping into the horn to drain away and preventing the water running back into the base unit. It should be noted that the two ducts are separated right at the outlet from the base unit, by a duct divider wall 26.

In the variant of Figure 4, the base unit is mounted behind a vertical wall and the dispensing unit has its horns arranged horizontally. In this way, the left and right horn mouldings are able to be symmetrical.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer comprising:

• an air dispensing unit having:

• means for attachment of the air dispensing unit to the panel or the base unit,

• a first nozzle at the distal end of the stem arranged to direct heated air at least partially downwards for hand drying and

• a second, lower heated-air nozzle in the air dispensing unit in communication with the heated-air-receiving duct and arranged for directing heated air upwards onto the user's hands from below, the air dispensing unit being adapted to divide the heated air between the distal end nozzle and the second nozzle;

• the air dispensing unit further comprising:

• two separate ducts for leading heated air from the base unit to the nozzles: • one duct leading to one nozzle and

• the other duct leading to the other nozzle.

2. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 1, wherein the air dispensing unit is hollow, with the separate ducts being provided as hoses within the unit.

3. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the separate ducts are formed as recesses inside two duct injection mouldings, the mouldings being secured together to form the air dispensing unit.

4. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 3, wherein the moulded ducts are smoothly shaped to avoid noise inducing features.

5. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the base unit includes two respective ducts corresponding to and communicating with the two ducts in the air dispensing unit.

6. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the base unit has a single airflow duct, air flow from it dividing into the two separate ducts on entry into the air dispensing unit.

7. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in any preceding claim, including air directing fins provided at the nozzles.

8. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 7, wherein the fins are moulded as part of a pair of opposed lining mouldings facing each other on opposed horns of the dispensing unit.

9. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 8, wherein the lining mouldings line the region between the horns and in which the users hand are placed to be dried.

10. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8, wherein the lining mouldings bound part of the separate ducts.

11. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8, wherein, except at the nozzles, the duct mouldings fully define the ducts inside the lining moulds.

12. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the horns are symmetrical and the lining mouldings are identical.

13. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 12, wherein the lining mouldings abut at their proximal ends.

14. A dual-outlet, through-panel hand dryer as claimed in claim 12, wherein the lining mouldings are separated by a hand presence sensor.