JPH11332713A - Electronic cooling pillow - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To provide an electronic cooling pillow that is easy to adjust a cooling temperature and time and is easy to use. SOLUTION: A head receiving portion 51 is constituted by cushion portions 16a and 16b and a heat collecting mat portion 14 which is disposed around the cushion portions and has a good thermal conductivity and is made of a flexible material. The heat collecting mat portion 14 is formed by arranging a plurality of flat copper net wires 15 side by side. The heat (cool air) on the cooling surface of the thermoelectric element 20 is configured to be transmitted to the heat collecting mat portion 14. A heat sink portion 52 is provided in contact with the heat radiation surface of the thermoelectric element 20, and the heat insulating plate 34 insulates the space between the head receiving portion 51 and the heat sink portion 52. As the heat dissipation fan motor 26 in the heat sink section 52, a fan motor having a larger static pressure than the air volume may be used.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an electronic cooling pillow using a thermoelectric element (Peltier element).

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a pillow for cooling, a water pillow and a pillow which uses a frozen substance to be frozen are known. But,
Electronic cooling pillows, to the applicant's knowledge, did not exist prior to the present invention.

[0003]

A conventionally known water pillow or a cooling pillow using a cooling substance does not maintain a cooling effect.
It was very inconvenient because the cooling temperature could not be adjusted. In view of this point, an object of the present invention is to provide a practical electronic cooling pillow that is easy to adjust the cooling temperature and time and is easy to use.

[0004]

An electronic cooling pillow according to the present invention has a head receiving portion having a cushioning property and containing a material having good thermal conductivity at least on a surface thereof, and has a surface which responds to an electric current. A thermoelectric element having a cooling surface and another surface serving as a heat radiating surface; a heat transfer unit configured to transmit heat of the cooling surface of the thermoelectric element to the head receiving unit; A heat sink portion; and a heat insulating portion that insulates between the head receiving portion and the heat sink portion.

[0005] In accordance with the energization, a thermoelectric element is used in which one surface is a cooling surface and the other surface is a heat radiating surface, and the heat of the cooling surface is transmitted to the head receiving portion. The head receiving part has cushioning properties,
And since at least the surface contains a material having good thermal conductivity, it is possible to efficiently transmit cold air on the surface and efficiently cool the head of the person using the pillow. Also,
Since it has cushioning properties, it is possible to achieve a good night's sleep by giving a moderate cushioning property that is easy to use as a pillow. In addition, heat on the heat dissipation surface of the thermoelectric element can be efficiently dissipated by the heat sink portion, and the heat insulating portion that insulates between the head receiving portion and the heat sink portion has a heat insulating portion. The cooling of the receiving portion can be performed efficiently. As a thermoelectric element of this type, a Peltier element is known, and it is preferable to use it.

In a preferred embodiment, the head receiving portion is constituted by a cushion portion, and a heat collecting mat portion disposed around the cushion portion and made of a flexible material having good heat conductivity. In this case, a metal netting, for example, a copper flat netting can be obtained relatively easily as the heat collecting mat portion, so that it can be used.

In order to increase the cooling efficiency, it is important to take measures to increase the heat radiation efficiency in the heat sink. Generally, the heat sink section includes a heat exchange fin and a fan motor that blows air to the fin, but preferably,
It is preferable to use a fan motor having a larger static pressure than the air volume. Experiments by the inventors have confirmed that in a fan motor having such a large static pressure, the cooling efficiency in a portion near the outlet of the fan is considerably high. Therefore, by disposing a fan motor having a large static pressure closer to the heat exchange fins, the heat exchange efficiency of the heat exchange fins can be increased, and the duct structure can be eliminated or simplified. The device configuration can be made compact. Note that a fan motor having a large static pressure as compared with the air volume is generally a fan motor having a small diameter of the fan. Such a fan motor is small and compact, and has low noise.
In that respect, it is very preferable. Further, by increasing the heat exchange efficiency, the heat exchange fin itself can be reduced in size, which is preferable.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the outer appearance of an embodiment of an electronic cooling pillow according to the present invention.
And an AC adapter unit 36 for supplying power to the AC adapter 0. The pillow body 10 generally comprises a cooling pillow 50 arranged substantially at the center and an outer peripheral cushion 31 arranged around the cooling pillow 50. The entire outside is covered with a cloth cover 11. I have.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the pillow body 10. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the pillow body 10 taken along line III-III, and FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV. In this cross-sectional view, illustration of the cover 11 covering the entire outside is omitted. FIG. 5 schematically shows an exploded perspective view of a cooling pillow portion 50 arranged at a substantially central portion of the pillow main body portion 10.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, heat sink portions 5 in cooling pillow portion 50 are provided at both ends of pillow body portion 10.
Air intake / exhaust ports 12, 13 are provided to communicate with the air intake / exhaust ports 12, 13 through which the air is exhausted for heat radiation. For example, a nylon net is stretched between the intake and exhaust ports 12 and 13. The outer peripheral cushion portion 31 is made of, for example, a sponge cushion made of urethane foam. As shown in FIG. 4, an inner cushion 32 is provided at a lower portion of a portion where the thickness of the outer peripheral cushion portion 31 is relatively thin. The inner cushion 32 is made of a sponge made of urethane foam or foam rubber slightly harder than the outer peripheral cushion portion 31 so that the outer cushion portion 31 can maintain a cushioning property in a thin portion.

As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG.
0 is a head receiving portion 51 having a cushioning property and containing a material having good thermal conductivity at least on the surface;
A thermoelectric element (that is, a Peltier element) 20 having one surface serving as a cooling surface and the other surface serving as a heat dissipation surface,
A heat transfer portion (a heat collecting aluminum block 19 and an aluminum plate 17) for transmitting the heat of the cooling surface to the head receiving portion 51; a heat sink portion 52 for radiating the heat of the heat radiating surface of the thermoelectric element 20; Part receiving part 51 and heat sink part 5
2 and a heat insulating plate 34 that insulates the heat insulating material 2 from the heat insulating material.

In the illustrated example, the head receiving portion 51 includes cushion portions 16a and 16b and the cushion portions 16a and 16b.
b, and a heat collecting mat portion 14 made of a flexible material having good thermal conductivity. The heat collecting mat portion 14 includes a plurality of metal nets, for example, copper flat nets 15.
Are arranged side by side on the cushion portions 16a and 16b. As the cushion portions 16a and 16b, a material that uses air as a cushion material, such as an air bag, can be used. Of course, the cushion portions 16a and 16b are made of other appropriate cushion material such as urethane foam or foam rubber. You may. Cushion portions 16a, 16
The reason why b is formed into two shapes (bimodal shape) is to make it easy to put a person's head as a pillow. Therefore, the shape of the cushion portions 16a and 16b is not limited to the shape shown in the figure, and an appropriate shape such as a single peak, a circle, or a ring may be selected.

The head receiving portion 51 is placed on the aluminum plate 17, and a substantially central portion of the flat copper wire 15 as the heat collecting mat portion 14 is brought into close contact with the aluminum plate 17 by the holding and fixing plate 18. It is fixed. Heat collecting mat part 1
The both ends of the flat copper wire 15 as the aluminum plate 1
7 and is fixed in close contact with the aluminum plate 17. An aluminum block 19 for heat collection is arranged in close contact with the lower surface of the aluminum plate 17 at substantially the center thereof, and a holding plate 18, a flat copper wire 15 as a heat collection mat part 14, an aluminum plate 17, and aluminum for heat collection The block 19 is fastened and fixed via screws 25. The aluminum block 19 is arranged so as to be in close contact with the cooling surface of the thermoelectric element 20, and the heat radiating surface of the thermoelectric element 20 is arranged so as to be in close contact with the heat collecting block 53 of the heat sink 52. With the thermoelectric element 20 interposed,
Each element 18, 17, 19, 53 is fastened and fixed by two screws 22. Block 1 with conflicting thermal properties
Washer 2 of screw 22 to insulate between 9 and 53
For the sleeve 3 and the sleeve 24, a heat insulating material such as a Duracon resin may be used. Thereby, the thermoelectric element 20
The cooling air of the cooling surface of the aluminum block 19 for heat collection,
Through the aluminum plate 17, the heat is transmitted to the heat collecting mat portion 14 including a large number of flat copper wires 15. In order to satisfy both the flexibility and the heat conduction efficiency that do not adversely affect the head, the heat collecting mat portion 14 is configured by a large number of copper flat wire wires 15 as a result of trial and error by the inventor. It was conceived, and it was confirmed that the heat conduction efficiency was considerably improved. Therefore, this is an extremely effective means for a cooling pillow. Of course, the present invention is not limited to this, and the heat collecting mat portion 14 may be formed using any material having good thermal conductivity.

The heat collecting aluminum block 19 on the head receiving part 51 side and the heat collecting block 53 on the heat sink part 52 side
And a space corresponding to the thickness of the thermoelectric element 20, the heat insulating plate 3 extends over substantially the entire lateral extension of the pillow body 10.
4 are arranged to insulate between upper and lower spaces having opposing thermal characteristics. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG.
A protective cushion 33 is disposed between the two cushion portions 16a and 16b, and covers the screws 22 and the fixing plate 18 to protect the head of the person using the pillow from them.

The heat sink 52 includes a heat collecting block 53.
Heat exchange fins 21 formed in
And a fan motor 26 for blowing air to the fan. For example,
The heat collecting block 53 and the heat exchange fins 2 are cut out from an aluminum block having good heat conductivity.
1 are integrally formed by skiving. A large number of heat exchange fins 21 are arranged in a plurality of rows, and when the inclination of the fins in each arrangement is alternately shifted (in a staggered manner), heat radiation efficiency is improved.

It is preferable to use a fan motor 26 having a larger static pressure than the air flow. It has been confirmed by experiments of the inventors that the fan motor 26 having such a large static pressure has a considerably high cooling efficiency in a portion near the outlet of the fan. Therefore, by disposing the fan motor 26 having a large static pressure in close contact with the heat exchange fins 21, the heat radiation efficiency of the heat exchange fins 21 can be increased. Further, the close arrangement of the fan motor 26 with respect to the heat exchange fins 21 eliminates the need for a duct structure for introducing wind from the fan motor 26 to the heat exchange fins 26, so that the apparatus configuration can be made compact.
The fan motor 26 having a large static pressure compared to the air volume is
Since the fan motor has a small fan diameter, it is small and compact, and has low noise. In addition, it is preferable that the heat exchange fin 21 itself can be reduced in size by increasing the heat radiation efficiency by using the fan motor 26 having a larger static pressure than the air volume. As an example, the fan motor 26 has a fan diameter of 40 mm square, a thickness of 20 mm, and an air volume of 0.19 per minute.
Sufficient effects were obtained using a cubic meter with a static pressure of 6.6 mm H2 O per minute.

In order to prevent the vibration generated by the rotation of the fan motor 26 from being transmitted to the head receiving portion 51 and exerting an adverse effect, it is preferable to appropriately take measures to absorb the vibration of the fan motor 26. Therefore, in this embodiment,
When installing the fan motor 26, the fan motor 2
6 is not directly fixed to the main body frame portion, but is indirectly fixed to the main body frame portion with a predetermined vibration absorbing material interposed therebetween. That is, as shown in FIG.
A foam rubber cushion 27 is provided on both sides of the fan motor 26.
a, 27b (for example, each 5 mm thick × 20 mm × 4
0 mm) with a double-sided tape or the like, and one end surfaces of the crank-shaped vibration absorbing plates 28a and 28b (for example, made of a zinc-treated steel plate) are bonded to the foam rubber cushions 27a and 27b with a double-sided tape or the like. In order to eliminate rattling, the side circumference of the fan motor 26 is wrapped tightly with an adhesive tape or the like from above one end surfaces of the vibration absorbing plates 28a, 28b, and each vibration absorbing plate is interposed with foam rubber cushions 27a, 27b. One end surfaces of 28a and 28b are fixed to both sides of the fan motor 26, respectively. Then, the periphery of the vibration absorbing plates 28a, 28b is covered with cushioning materials 29a, 29b such as urethane foam.
The other end surfaces of the a and 28b are pushed and fixed together with the cushion members 29a and 29b into the gaps of the mounting spacers 30a and 30b. The mounting spacers 30a to 30d are 4 in total.
As shown in FIG. 4, as shown in FIG. 4, the pillow body 10 is fixedly arranged on the bottom plate 35 in a predetermined arrangement, and the heat insulating plate 34 is fixed thereon. Although not particularly shown, each part is fixed to the main body frame part by screws or the like. The heat insulating plate 34
A fiber board or the like can be used as the bottom plate 35. Vibrations generated from the fan motor 26 are considerably absorbed by the foam rubber cushions 27a and 27b, the crank-shaped vibration absorbing plates 28a and 28b, and the cushion members 29a and 29b, and are directly applied to the mounting spacers 30a and 30b (that is, the main body frame portion). Can not be transmitted. Therefore, the vibration of the fan motor 26 with respect to the head receiving portion 20 can be considerably reduced.

As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, etc., a large convex portion 10a, a central concave portion 10b, and a small convex portion 10c are seen in the appearance of the pillow body portion 10. The central recess 10b is suitable for storing a person's head,
The large projection 10a is suitable for receiving the neck (cervical vertebra). It is desirable to be able to adjust the height for accommodating the neck (cervical vertebra) according to the preference of the user. As one means for that, as shown in FIG.
Approximately at the center, a tightening belt 54 for height adjustment
Should be provided. The belt 54 is made of cloth, and can be fastened and fixed at an arbitrary position by a magic fastener (not shown) or the like. When the belt 54 is strongly tightened, the outer peripheral cushion portion 31 of the large convex portion 10a is pressed and dented by that much, and the height at that portion can be adjusted. That is, when the belt 54 is wound around the portion that receives the neck during use as shown in the figure, and tightened appropriately, the height of the portion of the projection 10a that receives the neck can be adjusted. In addition,
The belt 54 is preferably wound around the pillow body 10 inside the cover 11.

FIG. 7 shows an example of an electric circuit built in the pillow body 10, and a power switch 38, a temperature changeover switch 39, and an energization display LED 40 are provided on the pillow body 10 as shown in FIG. It is arranged on the end face side. The temperature switch 39 is a switch for switching the cooling temperature in two stages. When the temperature switch 39 is turned on with the power switch 38 turned on, the resistor 41 is short-circuited,
The DC voltage from the adapter unit 36 is directly
0 and set to the lower cooling temperature. On the other hand, if the temperature changeover switch 39 is turned off while the power switch 38 is turned on, the DC voltage from the AC adapter section 36 drops through the resistor 41, and the thermoelectric element 2
The applied voltage of 0 is decreased, and the higher cooling temperature is set. In the circuit of FIG. 7, the voltage applied to the fan motor 26 and the energization display LED 40 is also changed in accordance with the switching of the cooling temperature. Therefore, when the set cooling temperature is low, the rotation of the fan motor 26 Rises, the lighting brightness of the LED 40 increases, and when the set cooling temperature is high, the rotation of the fan motor 26 decreases and L
The lighting brightness of the ED 40 decreases. By switching the cooling temperature in this way, the device can function as a cool sleep pillow at a high cooling temperature (for example, about 10 degrees C), and at a low cooling temperature (for example, about 5 degrees C or less) for thermal cooling. The device can function as a water pillow or an ice pillow. As a modification, the cooling temperature is not limited to two-stage switching, but may be multi-stage switching or one-stage switching.

Further, an automatic cooling temperature adjusting means may be provided so that a desired set cooling temperature can be maintained. For example, a cooling temperature automatic adjustment circuit including a variable resistor and a temperature detecting element is inserted at a position indicated by a dotted line block 55 in FIG. 7, and the set cooling temperature is maintained according to the temperature detected by the temperature detecting element. The variable resistor may be controlled as described above. Further, a timer circuit for controlling ON or OFF of the cooling time may be further provided. For example, at the location indicated by the dotted line block 56 in FIG.
An appropriate timer circuit composed of a CR circuit or the like may be inserted so as to control the ON / OFF point of the cooling by the timer.
As one embodiment of the timer, there is a form as a “rest timer” for controlling the cooling off point. In that case, for example, 15 minutes when the low cooling temperature is selected, 30 minutes when the high cooling temperature is selected, and so on.
If the timer operation time is switched according to the set temperature, the usability is improved.

Furthermore, the electronic cooling pillow according to the present invention may be provided with additional functions such as fragrance, lighting, a clock, and music. For this purpose, the pillow main body 10 may appropriately accommodate devices (fragrance generating devices, lighting devices, clocks, music reproducing devices, and the like) that realize these additional auxiliary functions such as fragrance, lighting, a clock, and music. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, there are empty spaces between the heat insulating plate 34 and the bottom plate 35 as shown by reference numerals 57 and 58 in the main body frame portion. What is necessary is just to accommodate a realization apparatus suitably.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, an electronic cooling pillow can be provided by using a thermoelectric element such as an electronic cooling element, that is, a Peltier element, so that the cooling temperature and time can be adjusted. Is easy to use and easy to use.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic external view showing an embodiment of an electronic cooling pillow according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the pillow body shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing a cooling pillow portion in the pillow body shown in FIGS. 1 to 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an example in which a fastening belt is wound around the pillow main body to adjust the height of a portion for receiving a neck.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing an example of an electric circuit built in the pillow body shown in FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Pillow body part 11 Cloth cover 12, 13 Air intake / exhaust port 31 Outer peripheral cushion part 51 Head receiving part 14 Heat collecting mat part 15 Copper flat net wire 16a, 16b Cushion part 17 Aluminum plate 18 Holding fixing plate 19 Aluminum block for heat collection DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 Thermoelectric element (Peltier element) 52 Heat sink part 53 Heat collecting block 21 Heat exchange fin 26 Fan motor 28a, 28b Vibration absorption plate 29a, 29b Cushion material 30a-30d Mounting spacer 34 Heat insulation plate 35 Bottom plate 54 Fastening belt

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A head receiving portion having a cushioning property and containing a material having good thermal conductivity at least on the surface, and a thermoelectric element having one surface serving as a cooling surface and the other surface serving as a heat dissipation surface according to energization. A heat transfer unit that transfers heat of a cooling surface of the thermoelectric element to the head receiving unit; a heat sink unit that radiates heat of a heat radiation surface of the thermoelectric element; the head receiving unit and the heat sink unit An electronic cooling pillow with a heat insulating part that insulates between the pillow. 2. The head receiving part according to claim 1, wherein the head receiving part is constituted by a cushion part and a heat collecting mat part which is disposed around the cushion part and has a good thermal conductivity and is made of a flexible material. Electronic cooling pillow as described. 3. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 2, wherein the heat collecting mat portion is made of a metal net. 4. The heat sink section includes heat exchange fins and a fan motor for blowing air to the fins, wherein the fan motor has a larger static pressure than the air volume. 4. The electronic cooling pillow according to any one of 1 to 3. 5. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 1, wherein the fan motor is indirectly fixed to the main body frame portion with a predetermined vibration absorbing material interposed therebetween. 6. A buckle for adjusting the height of the pillow is provided so that the height of the entire pillow can be adjusted in a portion receiving the neck in use. The electronic cooling pillow according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the height of the electronic cooling pillow can be adjusted by pressure. 7. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 1, further comprising means for switching a cooling temperature. 8. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 1, further comprising means for automatically adjusting a cooling temperature. 9. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 1, further comprising timer means for controlling on / off of a cooling time. 10. The electronic cooling pillow according to claim 1, wherein a device that realizes auxiliary functions such as fragrance, lighting, a clock, and music is housed.