JPH04353351A - Automatic hot water feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable an automatic decreasing of hot water temperature to be attained for a desired warm temperature without increasing a water level in a bath tub in an automatic hot water feeding bath device comprising a hot water feeding circuit, a bath water circulating circuit, a supplying circuit and a control part. CONSTITUTION:An automatic hot water feeding bath device is comprised of a changing-over valve 25 disposed at a discharging part of a pump 20 in a bath water circulation circuit 2, a water discharging passage 26 branched from the bath water circulation circuit 2 through the changing-over valve 25 and a discharged water flow rate sensor 27 for sensing a water discharging amount in the water discharging passage 26. A control part 4 calculates a water feeding amount for a bath tub 17 in reference to a hot water temperature in the bath tub 17, its amount and a hot water feeding temperature. Water of which the amount is determined through this calculation is supplied to tha bath tub 17 through a supplying circuit 3 so as to feed it and at the same time an approximate same amount of bath tub water is discharged through the changing-over valve 25 and the water discharging passage 26.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to an automatic hot water supply bath device that is capable of pouring hot water into a bathtub and circulating and heating the bath water. Concerning configuration.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 3, an automatic hot water supply bath system includes a hot water supply circuit 31, a bath circulation circuit 32, a drop-in circuit 33, and a control section 34.

[0003] The hot water supply circuit 31 boils water from the tap water in a hot water heat exchanger 35 and supplies hot water to a cooker 36 in the kitchen, washroom, etc., or to a bathtub 37 through a drop-in circuit 33 and a bath circulation circuit 32. , in the middle of the circuit,
An inlet water temperature sensor 38 consisting of a thermistor, a hot water supply amount sensor 39, a flow rate control valve 40, and an outlet hot water temperature sensor 41 are provided.

The bath circulation circuit 32 forcibly circulates the hot water in the bathtub 37 using a pump 42 and heats the bath water using a bath heat exchanger 43. A bath temperature sensor 44 is installed in the middle of the circuit. A running water switch 45 and a water level sensor 46 are provided.

The drop-in circuit 33 is branched from the hot water supply circuit 31 and connected to the bath circulation circuit 32.
It supplies hot water from the hot water supply circuit 31 to the downstream side of the bath circulation circuit 32 while preventing backflow from the hot water supply circuit 31. It is equipped with

The control unit 34 inputs detection signals from sensors such as the inlet water temperature sensor 38 of each circuit 31, 32, 33, and controls the flow rate control valve 40 and pump 42 based on these detection signals.
, the operation of movable parts such as the drop-in electromagnetic valve 49, and the ignition and extinguishing of the burners of the heat exchangers 35 and 43.

[0007] Conventionally, in the automatic hot water supply bath device having the above configuration, when the temperature of the water in the bathtub 37 is to be lowered to a lukewarm temperature, a certain amount of water is dropped into the bathtub 37 and poured. In other words, a certain amount of tap water is heated without being heated.
Water is poured into the bathtub 37 through the downstream portions of the hot water supply circuit 31, drop-in circuit 33, and bath circulation circuit 32.

[0008]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the conventional bathtub water temperature method, the degree to which the temperature of the water in the bathtub 37 decreases by dropping a certain amount of water is determined by the amount of water in the bathtub 37 at that time. It is determined by the temperature, the amount of hot water, and the temperature of the incoming water, and the resulting lukewarm temperature changes depending on the conditions at the time. Therefore, it may be necessary to pour water again or the water may become too warm, making it difficult to lower the temperature to an appropriate lukewarm temperature.

Furthermore, in the conventional system, the water level in the bathtub 37 rises, and depending on the user, the water level may rise too much.

[0010] The present invention has been made in view of the conventional problems, and aims to automatically lower the water temperature to a required lukewarm temperature without raising the water level in the bathtub. Take it as a challenge.

[0011]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a hot water supply circuit, a bath circulation circuit in which bath water is forcibly circulated by a pump, and a bath circulation circuit branched from the hot water supply circuit and connected to the bath circulation circuit. In an automatic hot water bath apparatus equipped with a drop-in circuit and a control unit, a switching valve provided on the discharge side of a pump of a bath circulation circuit, a drainage channel branching from the bath circulation circuit via the switching valve, and a drainage channel. and a drain flow rate sensor that detects the amount of water drained by the water supply circuit, and the control unit includes a calculation means that calculates the amount of water poured into the bathtub from the temperature of incoming water detected by the hot water supply circuit, the temperature of hot water in the bathtub, and the amount of hot water detected by the bath circulation circuit. and a water injection command means for injecting the amount of water calculated by the calculation means into the bathtub through a drop circuit;
The structure includes a drainage command means for discharging almost the same amount of bath water as described above through a switching valve and a drainage channel.

0012

[Function] In the above configuration, when lowering the water temperature in the bathtub, the control section first calculates the required amount of water to be poured in based on the preset lukewarm temperature, the current bathtub water temperature and amount, and the inlet water temperature. Calculate from. Then, the calculated amount of water is poured into the bathtub through a drop circuit and filled with water. This will lower the water temperature in the bathtub to the lukewarm setting. Next, the switching valve is switched to the drain side, and the pump is driven to drain almost the same amount of bath water as described above. The water level in the bathtub will now return to the water level before filling.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The details of the present invention will be explained based on an embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of an automatic hot water bath apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, including an electric circuit. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the control operation by the control section.

As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic hot water supply bath apparatus of this embodiment basically consists of a hot water supply circuit 1 and a bath circulation circuit 2.
, a drop-in circuit 3, and a control section 4, which are the same as in the conventional example.

The hot water supply circuit 1 includes an inlet pipe 5 that connects to the water supply, a hot water heat exchanger 6, and an outlet pipe 8 that connects to a cooktop 7 such as a kitchen or washroom. Water temperature sensor 9, hot water supply amount sensor 10, flow rate control valve 11
It is also the same as the conventional example in that a hot water temperature sensor 12 and a hot water outlet temperature sensor 12 are provided.

Further, the drop-in circuit 3 is branched from the downstream part of the flow rate control valve 11 of the hot water supply circuit 1 and connected to the downstream part of the bath circulation circuit 2, and includes a drop-in water amount sensor 13, a vacuum breaker 14, and a drop-in water flow rate sensor 13, a vacuum breaker 14, It is also the same as the conventional example in that it includes a solenoid valve 15 and a check valve 16.

In this embodiment, the bath circulation circuit 2 has a unique configuration not found in the conventional example. In other words, bath circulation circuit 2
As in the conventional example, a suction pipe 18 and a discharge pipe 19 connected to the bathtub 17, a pump 20 on the suction side,
A bath heat exchanger 21 is provided, and a bath temperature sensor 22 and a running water switch 23 are provided downstream of the pump 20.
A water level sensor 24 is provided, and a three-way valve 25 as a switching valve is installed at the discharge part of the pump 20.
This differs from the conventional example in that a drainage channel 26 to the outside is connected to the three-way valve 25, and a drainage flow rate sensor 27 is provided in the middle of the drainage channel 26. The three-way valve 25 is operated to switch under the control of the control section 4, which will be described later, and a detection signal from the drainage flow rate sensor 27 is input to the control section 4.

The control unit 4 receives an operation signal from the operation unit 28.
Further, detection signals are input from sensors such as the incoming water temperature sensor 9 of each circuit 1, 2, and 3, and the water flow switch 23, respectively. The operation section 28 is provided with at least a lukewarm temperature instruction switch 28a. Based on the operation signal and the detection signal, the control unit 4 controls the operation of movable parts such as the flow rate control valve 11, the pump 20, the drop-in solenoid valve 15, and the three-way valve 25, and also controls the operation of each heat exchanger 6. , 21, and this embodiment is characterized in that when the lukewarm instruction switch 28a is operated, the lukewarm mode is entered and the routine shown in the flowchart of FIG. 2 is executed. . In this lukewarm mode, the control unit 4 controls the bathtub 17
calculation means 4a for calculating the amount of water to be poured into the bathtub 17; water injection command means 4b for pouring the calculated amount of water into the bathtub 17;
It also functions as a drainage command means 4c for discharging almost the same amount of bath water as described above through the three-way valve 25 and the drainage channel 26.

Next, based on the flowchart of FIG.
The operation of the control unit 4 in the lukewarm mode will be explained.

[0021] In step S1, the lukewarm instruction switch 2
8a is operated, and when the switch 28a is operated, a detection signal from the water level sensor 24 is inputted to obtain data on the amount of hot water in the bathtub 17.

[0022] Next, proceeding to step S2, the pump 20
Start. Now, the bathtub water starts to circulate in the bath circulation circuit 2, but in the next step S3, it is checked whether the running water switch 23 is turned on or not, and the circulation of the bathtub water is confirmed. When the bathtub water circulates through the bath circulation circuit 2, a sensor provided in the middle of the bath circulation circuit 2 can detect the temperature of the water in the bathtub 17 at that time.

In step S4, detection signals are input from the bath temperature sensor 22 of the bath circulation circuit 2 and the incoming water temperature sensor 9 of the hot water supply circuit 1, respectively. With this, data on the temperature of the water in the bathtub 17 and the temperature of the water entering the bathtub 17 can be obtained.

[0024] In step S5, the temperature of the bathtub 17 is determined based on the data on the amount of hot water in the bathtub 17, the water temperature, and the entering water temperature, as well as the data on the preset lukewarm temperature (temperature range to be lowered).
Calculate the amount x of water that should be poured into the water. for example,
When the water temperature in the bathtub 17 is 42°C, the amount of hot water is 200 liters, the inlet water temperature is 10°C, the lukewarm temperature is 2°C, and the amount of water poured is x, the following equation (1) holds true.

200×42+10x=(200+x)×40
………(1) From this equation, water injection amount x
=20 is obtained. Once the data has been imported and calculated,
In step S6, the pump 20 is temporarily stopped.

The routine from step S7 onwards is a routine for water injection and drainage based on the above calculation results.

First, in step S7, the drop-in solenoid valve 15 is opened, and tap water is dropped into the bathtub 17 through the downstream portion of the drop-in circuit 3 and the bath circulation circuit 2. In step S8, it is determined whether the amount of water to be dropped has reached the calculated amount of water x, and when the amount of water to be dropped has reached the calculated amount
). In the case of the above calculation example, the required amount of 20 liters of water is dropped into the bathtub 17 and filled with water.
As per the setting, the water temperature will drop by 2 degrees Celsius to 40 degrees Celsius.

After water injection, the three-way valve 25 is switched to the drain channel 26 side in step S10, and the pump 20 is started again in step S11. Now, the bathtub water is drained to the outside through the three-way valve 25 and the drain channel 26, but in step S12, it is determined whether the amount of drainage has reached the calculated water amount (water injection amount) x, and the calculated water amount x When reaching the point, the pump 20 is stopped (step S13), and in step S14,
The three-way valve 25 is switched to return to the downstream side of the bath circulation circuit 2. As a result, the same amount of bathtub water as the amount of water that was poured is drained, and the water level in the bathtub 17 returns to the water level before the water was poured.

In the above embodiment, water is poured after water is poured, but it is also possible to pour water after water is drained. The steps may be performed alternately. With this method, even if a large amount of water is required, the bathtub water will not overflow and a sufficient lukewarm effect will not be obtained.

[0030]

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, water is poured into the bathtub in an amount corresponding to the current conditions such as the water temperature and amount of water in the bathtub, so the water temperature in the bathtub is automatically adjusted to the required lukewarm temperature. This makes it easy to use, as there is no need to keep it too warm or repeat the operation to make it warm like in the past.

Furthermore, since approximately the same amount of water is drained from the bathtub as the amount of water poured into the bathtub, the water level in the bathtub does not rise.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of an automatic hot water bath apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the control operation of the control section in the above embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of a conventional automatic hot water supply bath device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Hot water supply circuit 2 Bath circulation circuit 3 Drop-in circuit 4 Control section 4a Arithmetic means 4b Water injection command means 4c Drainage command means 17 Bathtub 20 Pump 25 Three-way valve (switching valve) 26 Drainage channel 27 Drainage flow sensor

Claims (1)

[Claims] [Claim 1] A hot water supply circuit (1) and a pump (
20), a bath circulation circuit (2) for forced circulation, a drop-in circuit (3) branched from the hot water supply circuit (1) and connected to the bath circulation circuit (2), and a control unit (4). In the bath device, there is a switching valve (25) provided on the discharge side of the pump (20) of the bath circulation circuit (2), and a drainage channel (26) that branches from the bath circulation circuit (2) via the switching valve (25). ) and a drainage flow rate sensor (27) that detects the amount of drainage from the drainage channel (26), and the control unit (4) includes:
The inlet water temperature detected in the hot water supply circuit (1), the bath circulation circuit (
Calculating means (4a) for calculating the amount of water poured into the bathtub (17) from the hot water temperature and amount of hot water in the bathtub (17) detected in step 2);
A water injection command means (4b) for injecting the amount of water calculated by the calculation means (4a) into the bathtub (17) through the drop circuit (3), a switching valve (25), and a drain channel (
26) and drain command means (4c) for discharging substantially the same amount of bath water as described above.