WO2017049306A1

WO2017049306A1 - System and method for detecting abnormalities in an ultraviolet light fluid purifier

Info

Publication number: WO2017049306A1
Application number: PCT/US2016/052530
Authority: WO
Inventors: Manu Verma; Dhanish DHARMAN
Original assignee: Pentair Residential Filtration, Llc
Priority date: 2015-09-17
Filing date: 2016-09-19
Publication date: 2017-03-23

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention provide a system for detecting abnormalities in a fluid purifier with a UV light purifier module. The system may include a housing and a UV light purifier positioned within the housing. The UV light purifier may include an outer housing having a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, the window being formed of a polymeric material with a fluorescent material on an inner surface of the polymeric material. The UV light purifier may further include a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing and a quartz sleeve positioned within the outer housing between the UV lamp and the window.

Description

SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR DETECTING

ABNORMALITIES IN AN ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT FLUID PURIFIER

BACKGROUND

[0001] Typically, UV lamps are used to disinfect filtered water. As the UV lamp ages, the intensity of UV light output from the lamp generally diminishes. Eventually, the intensity falls below a level necessary to effect a desired microorganism kill rate. Accordingly, a monitoring system is required to check on the UV light intensity within the water treatment system. However, these monitoring systems are typically expensive and often require costly UV light sensors with quartz windows.

[0002] In addition, UV lamps typically include a quartz sleeve that provides a protective barrier around the UV lamp so that the lamp can operate at its optimal temperature. The quartz sleeve helps deliver UV radiation from the UV lamp into the water stream. However, over time, the quartz sleeve will lose its ability to transmit UV radiation into the reactor chamber due to fouling of the sleeve. Thus, the sleeve must be cleaned and/or replaced periodically.

[0003] Still further, there are a number of manufacturers that are making cheap quality UV lamps and quartz sleeves. The normal consumer has no way to detect whether the parts used in their product are genuine. For example, glass tubes are sold as being quartz sleeves and the glass tubes do not allow UVC rays to pass through, thereby diminishing the efficiency of the product. Similarly, replacement UV lamps are available that do not emit UVC germicidal rays, which can disinfect water of microbiological impurities. These replacement UV lamps produce blue light, which resembles that of a good quality UV lamp, but instead, have no purification capability. To identify low quality or fake products, one must buy costly electronic equipment or send the product to a laboratory for testing.

[0004] Current systems have addressed the issue of failing UV lamps by employing a light emitting diode (LED) to indicate whether the UV lamp is functioning. The system works by sensing a current drawn by the UV lamp and changing an illumination color of the LED to blue if the UV lamp is on and red if the UV lamp is off. These indicators address the electrical operation of lamp (whether the UV lamp is operating or not), but do not give a direct indication if the UV lamp has failed, is performing purification, or is not genuine.

[0005] As is apparent from the foregoing, there is a need in the field of UV lamps to determine whether the UV lamp and the quartz sleeve are of suitable quality (e.g., they have failed or are not genuine) and/or whether the UV lamp and the quartz sleeve need replacement.

SUMMARY

[0006] Some embodiments of the invention provide a system for detecting abnormalities in a fluid purifier having a UV light purifier module. The system may include a housing and a UV light purifier positioned within the housing. The UV light purifier module may include an outer housing having a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, the window being formed of a polymeric material with a fluorescent material on an inner surface of the polymeric material. The UV light purifier may further include a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing and a quartz sleeve positioned within the outer housing between the UV lamp and the window.

[0007] Some embodiments of the invention provide a UV light purifier module including a an outer housing having a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, the window being formed of a polymeric material with a fluorescent material on an inner surface of the polymeric material. The UV light purifier module may further include a UV lamp positioned within the housing and a quartz sleeve positioned within the outer housing between the UV lamp and the window.

[0008] Some embodiments of the invention provide a method of detecting abnormalities in a fluid purifier including a UV purifier module having an outer housing with a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing, and a quartz sleeve positioned within the housing between the UV lamp and the window. The method may include the steps of emitting J

UVC rays from the UV lamp and directing a first portion of the UVC rays at the quartz sleeve to provide a first visible indicator on a first portion of the window of whether the quartz sleeve has any abnormalities. The method may further include the step of directing a second portion of the UVC rays onto a second portion of the window to provide a second visible indicator of whether the UV lamp has any abnormalities.

[0009] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood upon consideration of the following detailed description, drawings, and appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of water flow through an exemplary fluid purifier utilizing an ultraviolet (UV) purifier module that may implement the detection and/or indicator apparatuses and methods of the present invention.

[001 1] FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of an exemplary fluid purifier utilizing a UV light purifier module and that may implement the detection and/or indicator apparatuses and method of the present invention.

[0012] FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the fluid purifier of FIG. 2 depicting an indicator window in a front cover of the fluid purifier for providing results of the detection methods of the present invention to a user of the fluid purifier.

[0013] FIGS. 4 and 5 are cross-sectional views of a first embodiment of a UV light purifier module taken generally perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the UV light purifier module with a front elevational view of an indicator window to depict colors displayed on the indicator window for different conditions.

[0014] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of a UV light purifier module taken generally perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the UV light purifier module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of "including," "comprising," or "having" and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "supported," and "coupled" and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Further, "connected" and "coupled" are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings.

[0016] The following discussion is presented to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use embodiments of the invention. Various modifications to the illustrated embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles herein can be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from embodiments of the invention. Thus, embodiments of the invention are not intended to be limited to embodiments shown, but are to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed herein. The following detailed description is to be read with reference to the figures, in which like elements in different figures have like reference numerals. The figures, which are not necessarily to scale, depict selected embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of embodiments of the invention. Skilled artisans will recognize the examples provided herein have many useful alternatives and fall within the scope of embodiments of the invention. [0017] FIG. 1 illustrates flow of water through an exemplary fluid purifier 10 that may implement the apparatuses and methods of the present invention. The fluid purifier 10 generally includes an inlet 12 through which fluid, such as for example water, enters the fluid purifier 10. While the present application may refer to the fluid as water, other fluids may be purified using the fluid purifier 10. After entering the fluid purifier 10, the water may flow through a pre-filter 14. The water may then flow through first, second, and third stages 16, 18, 20, which may include any suitable filtering or purifying elements. In an exemplary embodiment, each of the stages 16, 18, 20 may be selected from the following filter elements: a coarse sediment filter cartridge which reduces impurities, such as dust and sediment that are greater than about 10 microns in size, within the water; bacteriostatic granular activated carbon with nano-silver impregnated technology, which reduces chlorine, bad taste, and odor within the water; and a fine sediment filter cartridge, which reduces finer impurities, such as dust and sediment that are greater than about 5 microns in size, within the water. The water may additionally flow through a fourth stage 22, which may be a reverse osmosis membrane. The membrane 22 may have fine pores, which are as small as 0.0001 micron in size, to reduce water contaminants, such as dissolved salts, pesticides, heavy metals, water borne micro-organisms such as viruses, bacteria, etc., and any other contaminants. Water rejected by the reverse osmosis membrane is diverted to a drain 25. The water may flow through a fifth stage 24, which may include bacteriostatic granular activated carbon with nano silver impregnation technology. Lastly, the water flows through a sixth stage 26, which includes a UV light purifier module. The UV light purifier module 26 protects against microbiological impurities and deactivates most protozoa, bacteria, and viruses by damaging their genetic code to prevent further reproduction. Once the water is purified by the UV light purifier module 26, the water is routed to a faucet 28 or other exit point.

[0018] While a number of different stages of filtration and/or purification are depicted in FIG. 1, any number of stages may be utilized. In an exemplary embodiment, only a UV light purifier module is utilized. In another exemplary embodiment, only a reverse osmosis membrane and a UV light purifier module are utilized. Additionally, the types of filtration and/or purification elements used at different stages may be varied based on a particular application or a desired result. [0019] Figure 1 is a basic depiction of n exemplary fluid purifier. As one skilled in the art will understand, the fluid purifier 10 may include a controller, for example in the form of a microcontroller or application specific integrated circuit, to control functionality of the fluid purifier 10. The fluid purifier 10 may also include any number of solenoids, valves, pumps, storage tanks, flow resistors, and/or other suitable components.

[0020] A further exemplary embodiment of a fluid purifier 30 is depicted in FIG. 2 and includes a housing 32 for housing a plurality of purification stages 34, 36, 38, and 40. The purification stages 34, 36, 38 may include any filtration or purification elements or modules, such as those discussed herein or any other suitable filtration or purification elements or modules. The purification stage 40 includes a UV light purifier module with an indicator 50, as seen on the module in FIG. 2 and through a transparent window 53 in front cover 51 of the housing 32 in FIG. 3. When both a UV lamp and a quartz sleeve are genuine, all three sections of the indicator will glow red, as indicated by reference numeral 52a. When the UV lamp is genuine and the quartz sleeve is fake, the center section of the indicator will glow blue and the end sections will glow red, as indicated by reference numeral 52b. Lastly, when the UV lamp and the quartz sleeve are fake, all three sections of the indicator will glow blue, as indicated by reference numeral 52c. One skilled in the art will understand that the colors of the three sections may be varied to be any suitable color or colors, which may be varied based on the fluorescent dye(s) used.

[0021] Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, the UV light purifier module 40 of any of the embodiments herein includes an outer housing 60 that may be made of, for example, a polyvinyl chloride tube. A UV lamp 62 is disposed within the outer housing 60 and has a longitudinal axis that is generally parallel to a longitudinal axis of the outer housing 60. The UV lamp 62 is suitable for sterilization purposes and may have a wavelength within the range of 150 to 290 nanometers, for example, about 254 nanometers. A quartz sleeve 64 is also positioned within the outer housing 60, has a longitudinal axis that is generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the outer housing 60, and is spaced from the UV lamp 62. The quartz sleeve 64 is clear, may be tubular in shape, and is used to protect the delicate UV lamp from the water passing through the UV light purifier module 40 and to allow UV radiation to pass through the quartz sleeve 64. A reflecting sheet 66 is attached to an inner surface 68 of the outer housing 60. An indicator window 70 is also positioned within the outer housing 60 to allow the passage of UV rays. A window or opening 53 may be positioned within the fluid purifier housing 32 to allow a user to view the indicator window 70 without removing the front cover 51. Still optionally, the outer housing 60 may include a clear window and the fluid purifier housing 32 may include the indicator window 70 with a fluorescent material, as discussed in detail below. Separating elements 72 may be positioned between the quartz sleeve 64 and the indicator window 70 to only allow light passing through the quartz sleeve 64 to be emitted through a center section 74b of the indicator window 70. As can be seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, the indicator window 70 may have a first outer section 74a, the center section 74b, and a second outer section 74c to provide different indicators, as will be discussed in greater detail below. In another embodiment, one of the outer sections 74a, 74c may be eliminated, leaving two sections for indicating the status of the UV lamp 62 and the quartz sleeve 64.

[0022] The indicator window 70 may be made of one or more of a fluorescent material, silicone, one or more polymers, or any other suitable materials. The fluorescent material may include, for example, one or more phosphor powders, such as zinc sulfide (ZnS) containing copper (Cu), or any other suitable fluorescent material(s). In an exemplary embodiment, the indicator window 70 is formed of a polymeric material having a coating formed of a fluorescent material and silicone on an inner surface 76 (that faces the UV lamp 62) of the polymeric material. In another exemplary embodiment, the indicator window 70 may be formed of a polymeric material having a separate part 77 containing a fluorescent pigment and attached to the inner surface of the polymeric material by, for example, adhesive, mechanical means, or any other suitable manner. The separate part 77 may be formed of a phosphor powder, for example, compounded with a base material (e.g., a silicon cast material or any other suitable material). Silicon is impervious and resistant to UV light degradation, which increases the life of the indicator window 70 material. In an exemplary embodiment, the polymeric material is polyacylonitrile. The fluorescent material glows a particular color (e.g., red) and intensity in the visible spectrum when exposed to authentic UVC radiation. The fluorescent material will not glow in the presence of only UVA or UVB radiation.

[0023] When the fluid purifier 30 is energized, the UV light purifier module 40 emits UVC rays 80, which are short wave rays having a wavelength of between about 100 and about 290 nanometers. If the quartz sleeve 64 is authentic and functioning properly, a portion of the UVC rays 80 will pass through the quartz sleeve 64, through a channel 82 formed by the separating elements 72, and through the central section 74b of the indicator window 70. The UVC rays 80 will react with the fluorescent material and will appear as a red color on the central section 74b of the indicator window 70, as seen in FIG. 4, when the quartz sleeve 64 is both authentic and functioning properly. If the quartz sleeve 64 is not authentic or not functioning properly, the UVC rays will not pass through the quarts tube 64 or through the indicator window 70 and the indicator window will appear as a blue color, as seen in FIG. 5.

[0024] Still referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, a portion of the UVC rays 80 (the rays that do not hit or pass through the quartz sleeve 64) are reflected off the reflecting sheet 66 and some of the reflected rays enter channels 84a, 84b formed on opposing sides of the separating elements 72. If the UV lamp 62 is genuine and functioning properly, the UVC rays 80 react with the fluorescent material on the indicator window 70 and the rays 80 will react with the fluorescent material and will appear as a red color on the indicator window 70. In contrast, if the UV lamp 62 is not genuine or not functioning properly, the UVC rays 80 will not react with the fluorescent material on the indicator window 70 and will appear as blue in color on the indicator window 70. If the UV lamp 62 is not working, no visible indication is present, which indicates that the UV lamp 62 must be changed or ballast or wiring needs to be checked. This provides a direct visual indication to the user to increase reliability should the lamp fail.

[0025] A further embodiment of a UV light purifier module 100 is depicted in FIG. 6. The UV light purifier module 100 includes an outer housing 102 that may be made of, for example, a polyvinyl chloride tube. A UV lamp 104 is disposed within the outer housing 102 and has a longitudinal axis that is generally parallel to a longitudinal axis of the outer housing 102. The UV lamp 104 is suitable for sterilization purposes and may have a wavelength within the range of 150 to 290 nanometers. A quartz sleeve 106 is positioned within the outer housing 102 and surrounds the UV lamp 104. The quartz sleeve 106 is clear and is used to protect the delicate UV lamp from the water passing through the UV light purifier module 100 and to allow UV radiation to pass therethrough. A reflecting sheet 108 is attached to an inner surface 1 10 of the outer housing 102. An indicator window 112 is also positioned within the outer housing 102 to allow the passage of UV rays. Separating elements 114 may be positioned between the quartz sleeve 106 and the indicator window 112 to only allow light passing through the quartz sleeve 106 to be emitted through a center section 1 16b of the indicator window 112 in a manner similar to FIGS. 4 and 5. The indicator window 112 may have a first and second outer section 114a, 114c similar to those shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The UV light purifier module 100 of FIG. 6 works in the same manner as the UV light purifier module 40 of FIGS. 4 and 5 to indicate whether the UV lamp and quartz sleeve are genuine and/or functioning properly.

[0026] In an experiment, a florescent material was coated on one side of an acrylic sheet. The acrylic sheet was placed with the coated surface spaced from and facing a UV lamp and the UV lamp was turned on. When the florescent material was directly contacted with germicidal rays (UVC), the fluorescent material started glowing in the desired color. The acrylic sheet was then flipped over such that the coated surface was positioned away from the UV lamp and the UV lamp was turned on. No color change was seen because the germicidal rays (UVC) were blocked by the acrylic sheet. The results of the experiment show that a fluorescent material applied or otherwise attached to an inner surface of the acrylic sheet aids in determining abnormalities in both a UV lamp and a quartz sleeve at the same time.

[0027] The detection and indicator apparatuses and methods discloses herein include means for detection and visual indication of UVC waves in a water purifier, which can be used to indicate 1) that the system is on, 2) that the UV lamp is the proper germicidal UV lamp, 3) that the tubing used is genuine quartz instead of glass (which blocks the beneficial wavelengths), 4) that the UV lamp is functioning properly, and 5) that the quartz sleeve is functional properly. The apparatuses and methods herein, unlike the prior art, can distinguish between genuine and fake UV lamps and quartz sleeves and can detect whether UV lamps and quartz sleeves are functioning properly without the use of an electronic detection system. Overall, the detection and indicator apparatuses and methods detect abnormalities in the UV lamp and the quartz sleeve. [0028] While UV detection and indicator apparatuses and methods are discussed herein in combination with particular fluid purifiers, the detection methods may be utilized with any purifier having a UV purification stage or module.

[0029] The UV detection and indicator apparatuses and methods disclosed herein provide very low cost, safe and user-friendly means of detecting and indicating abnormalities within a UV light purifier module.

[0030] It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that while the invention has been described above in connection with particular embodiments and examples, the invention is not necessarily so limited, and that numerous other embodiments, examples, uses, modifications and departures from the embodiments, examples and uses are intended to be encompassed by the claims attached hereto. The entire disclosure of each patent and publication cited herein is incorporated by reference, as if each such patent or publication were individually incorporated by reference herein. Various features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. A system for detecting abnormalities in a fluid purifier module having a UV light purifier, the system including: a housing; and a UV light purifier module positioned within the housing and including: an outer housing having a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, the window being formed of a polymeric material with a fluorescent material on an inner surface of the polymeric material; a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing; and a quartz sleeve positioned within the outer housing between the UV lamp and the window.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the quartz sleeve surrounds the UV lamp.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the UV lamp is spaced from the quartz sleeve.

4. The system of claim 1, further including a reflecting sheet positioned on a least a portion of an inner surface of the outer housing to reflect the UV rays emitted by the UV lamp.

5. The system of claim 1, further including separating elements extending between the quartz sleeve and the window to create a central section that depicts a condition of the quartz sleeve and at least one outer section on a side of the central section that depicts a condition of the UV lamp.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the fluorescent material is a coating applied to the inner surface of the polymeric material.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the fluorescent material is a separate part containing a fluorescent pigment and attached to the inner surface of the polymeric material.

8. A UV light purifier module including: an outer housing having a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, the window being formed of a polymeric material with a fluorescent material on an inner surface of the polymeric material; a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing; and a quartz sleeve positioned within the outer housing between the UV lamp and the window.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the UV lamp is positioned within the quartz sleeve.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the UV lamp is spaced from the quartz sleeve.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the fluorescent material is a coating applied to the inner surface of the polymeric material.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the fluorescent material is a separate part containing a fluorescent pigment and attached to the inner surface of the polymeric material.

13. A method of detecting abnormalities in a fluid purifier including a UV purifier module having an outer housing with a window positioned within at least a portion of the outer housing, a UV lamp positioned within the outer housing, and a quartz sleeve positioned within the housing between the UV lamp and the window, the detection method including the steps of: emitting UVC rays from the UV lamp; directing a first portion of the UVC rays at the quartz sleeve to provide a first visible indicator on a first portion of the window of whether the quartz sleeve has any abnormalities; and directing a second portion of the UVC rays onto a second portion of the window to provide a second visible indicator of whether the UV lamp has any abnormalities.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of directing the second portion of the UVC rays includes the steps of reflecting the second portion of the UVC rays off a reflecting sheet positioned on an inner surface of the outer housing and directing a third portion of the UVC rays onto the second portion of the window, the third portion of the UVC rays being less than or equal to the second portion of the UVC rays.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the first visible indicator includes turning the window a first color if the quartz sleeve is genuine and turning the window a second color if the quartz sleeve is fake.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the second visible indicator includes turning the window a first color if the UV lamp is functioning properly and turning the window a second color if the UV lamp is not functioning properly.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the second visible indicator includes turning the window a first color if the UV lamp is functioning properly and turning the window a second color if the UV lamp is not functioning properly.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein if the UV lamp is not working, no visible indication is present which indicates that the UV lamp must be changed or ballast or wiring need to be checked.